Belgium Folder, and Holy Roman Empire.kmz

Belgium Folder, and Holy Roman Empire

Belgium (Meuse and Scheldt Rivers, Ardennes Mts)
Belgium; THOMAS A KEMPIS, PRIEST, MONK, AND WRITER (24 JULY 1471) ; JOHN WYCLIF, TRANSLATOR AND CONTROVERSIALIST, 30 OCT. 1384 ; GEOFFREY ANKETELL STUDDERT KENNEDY, PRIEST, 1929, Commemorated March 8 ; DAMIEN of MOLOKAI, PRIEST AND LEPER, 1889, Commemorated April 15 ; GEORGE, SOLDIER and MARTYR, 23 APRIL 303, Commemorated April 23; Martyr Barbarus the Soldier in Morea, Commemorated on May 6; ALCUIN, DEACON, SCHOLAR, AND ABBOT OF TOURS (20 MAY 804); Glorification of the Venerable Zebulon, the father of St Nino Enlightener of Georgia, Commemorated on May 20; Nicholas Copernicus of NICHOLAS COPERNICUS and JOHANNES KEPLER, ASTRONOMERS, 1543 & 1630, Commemorated May 23 ; BERTHA and ETHELBERT, QUEEN & KING OF KENT, 616, Commemorated May 26 ; JOAN OF ARC, VISIONARY, 30 May 1431; Hieromartyr Lucian the Bishop at Beauvais in France, Commemorated on June 3;

Belgium, 1195-1350, Northern Crusades, ordered by Popem, Battle of the Ice, Pskov Lake
Russia, Novgorod, 1195-1350, Northern Crusades, ordered by Pope Celestine III; Rome, 1191-1198, Pope, Celestine III; Novgorod, 1242, Great Battle of the Ice of Pskov Lake, defeat of Teutonic Knights; Repose of St Alexander Nevsky, Commemorated on November 23;

Belgium, 1517, Ninety Five Theses, Martin Luther, Protestant
Germany, 1517, Ninety Five Theses, Martin Luther, Protestant; Germany, 1503-1546, Martin Luther, Protestant ; Wittenberg, Germany ; Lutherhaus; MARTIN LUTHER, EDUCATOR, TRANSLATOR (18 FEB 1546); JAN HUS, PRIEST and MARTYR, 6 July 1415;

Belgium, 1526-1804, Holy Roman Empire, Hapsburg Empire, Austria, Germany and Spain
Belgium, Holy Roman Empire, 1526-1804, Hapsburg Empire, Austria; St John of Galesh, Commemorated on October 21; Martyr Oprea of Salistie in Romania, Commemorated on October 21;

Belgium, 800-1806, Holy Roman Empire, Revived in 2009, Centered in Belgium
Belgium, 800-1806, Holy Roman Empire, Revived in 2009, Centered in Belgium; Charlemagne, a Frank, first Holy Roman Emperor (800-814); Charlemagne Building; European Union Constitution, Nov 3, 2009;

Belgium, 1699, Treaty of Karlowitz, Ended Ottoman Contorl Central Europe, Established Hapsburg Monarchy
Austria, 1699, Treaty of Karlowitz, Ended Ottoman Contorl Central Europe, Established Hapsburg Monarchy;

Belgium, 1806, Holy Roman Empire Disolved by Francis 1 after Austerlitz Battle
Battle of Austerlitz, Napoleon over Holy Roman Empire, 1805; Austria, Austrian Emperor, 1804-1835, Francis I aka Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor;

Franks, Land of the Franks (Belgium then Paris in 508)
Franks; St Ambrose the Bishop of Milan, Commemorated December 7 ; Martyr Barbarus the Soldier in Morea, Commemorated on May 6; BERTHA and ETHELBERT, QUEEN & KING OF KENT, 616, Commemorated May 26 ;

Markomannia (Land of the Franks, Belgium)
Markomia, Markomannians were Frankish from the Land of the Franks in lower and middle Rhineland; Franks; St Ambrose the Bishop of Milan, Commemorated on December 7 ;

Belgium History Folder

Belgium, 40-99, 1st Century Folder, Lucian of Beauvais

Belgium, 40-96, Hieromartyr Lucian, sent to Gaul, then to Belgium, c all Belgium, heavenly light, picked up head
France, 40-96, Hieromartyr Lucian the Bishop at Beauvais, France (Avalon River Mouth, Therain River 4), converted by Peter, preached in Italy, Clement sent him to Gaul, then to Belgium, very successful, by words and life example, strict ascetic, c all Belgium, beheaded, heavenly light, picked up head and carried to his grave; Beauvais; Hieromartyr Lucian the Bishop at Beauvais in France, Commemorated on June 3; Hieromartyr Lucian lived in Rome, and his pagan name was Lucius. was converted to Christ by the Apostle Peter, and was baptized. Saint Peter’s death, Saint Lucian preached the Gospel in Italy. Dionysius the Areopagite (October 3), a disciple of Saint Paul, arrived in Rome at this time. the request of Saint Clement, Pope of Rome (November 25), he agreed to preach the Gospel in the West, and gathered companions and helpers for this task. Clement consecrated Saint Lucian a bishop, then sent him off with Saint Dionysius, Saints Marcellinus and Saturninus, the Presbyter Maximian, and the Deacon Julian. holy preachers sailed from Italy to Gaul (modern France). Marcellinus and those accompanying him continued on to Spain. Saturninus went to Gaul, Saint Dionysius and the others went to the region of Paris. there Saint Lucian went to Belgium with Maximian and Julian. Lucian’s preaching was very successful. By the power of his words and the example of his life, he converted a large number of pagans to Christianity. Lucian was a strict ascetic, and all day long he ate only a morsel of bread and some water. the converted he was kindly, always joyful and cheerful of face. almost all the settlements of Belgium were converted to Christ. this period, the Roman emperor Dometian (81-96) initiated a second persecution against Christians (after that of Nero, 54-68), and he issued an edict prescribing torture and execution for anyone who refused to offer sacrifice to the pagan gods. officials were sent to Belgium to carry out the edict. Lord revealed to Saint Lucian the ordeal facing him. He gathered the flock together, urging them not to fear threats, tortures or death, and then he gave thanks to God for granting him the possibility of joining the company of the holy martyrs. After praying, Saint Lucian and the priest Maximian and Deacon Julian withdrew to the summit of a hill, where he continued to teach the people who came with him. the soldiers of the emperor came upon the saints and led them away for trial. Saints Maximian and Julian were urged to renounce Christ and offer sacrifice to idols, but both refused and were beheaded. the judge began to interrogate Saint Lucian, accusing him of sorcery and disobedience to the emperor and Senate. The saint replied that he was not a sorcerer, but rather a servant of the true God, the Lord Jesus Christ, and he refused to offer sacrifice to idols made by human hands. saint was subjected to fierce beatings, during which he repeated, “Never will I cease to praise Christ, the Son of God, in my heart, and with my lips.” Then the holy martyr was beheaded. heavenly light shone over his body, and the Voice of the Savior was heard, summoning the valiant sufferer into the heavenly Kingdom to receive the martyr’s crown. the power of God the saint stood up, picked up his severed head, and crossed over the river. Reaching the burial spot he had chosen, he lay down upon the ground and reposed in peace. of this great miracle about 500 pagans were converted to Christ. Later, a church was built over Saint Lucian’s grave, to which the relics of the martyrs Maximian and Julian were transferred.

Belgium, 300, 4th -8th Century Folder, Francia or Frankland

Belgium, 303-323, Zebulon, Enlightener of the Franks and Gaul, Father of St Nino Enlightner of Georgia
Belgium, 303-323 (about 20 years from his relative Great-martyr George's death in 303), Zebulon, Enlightener of the Franks and Gaul, Father of St Nino Enlightner of Georgia; Francia: the Frankish Empire, the capital later (508) moved to Paris; Franks; Glorification of the Venerable Zebulon, the father of St Nino Enlightener of Georgia, Commemorated on May 20; St Germanus the Bishop of Paris, Commemorated on May 28; St Augustine of Canterbury, Evangelizer of England, Commemorated on May 26; BERTHA and ETHELBERT, QUEEN & KING OF KENT, 616, Commemorated May 26 ; St Germanus the Bishop of Paris, Commemorated on May 28;

Belgium, 336-350, Land of the Marcomanni and Queen Fritigil, Huns
Little Hungarian Plain, 350, Land of the Marcomanni and Queen Fritigil; Sabaria (Little Hungarian Plain), where the Alpokalja (Lower Alps) mountains meet the Little Hungarian Plain; St Martin the Merciful the Bishop of Tours, Commemorated October 12 ; St Martin the Merciful the Bishop of Tours, Commemorated November 11 ; St. Ambrose the Bishop of Milan, Commemorated on December 7; CYRIL AND METHODIUS, MISSIONARIES TO THE SLAVS (14 FEB 869) ;

Belgium, 349, Black Plague in Belgium
Belgium, 349, Black Plague in Belgium; REMIGIUS OF RHEIMS, BISHOP, APOSTLE OF THE FRANKS (1 OCTOBER 530);

Belgium, 481-843, Frankish Empire, Belgium (Francia or Frankland)
Frankish Empire, 481-843, Belgium (Francia or Frankland): the Frankish Empire, the capital later (508) moved to Paris; Franks; Glorification of the Venerable Zebulon, the father of St Nino Enlightener of Georgia, Commemorated on May 20; St Germanus the Bishop of Paris, Commemorated on May 28; St Augustine of Canterbury, Evangelizer of England, Commemorated on May 26;

Belgium, 481-843, Frankland (Francia)
Francia: the Frankish Empire, the capital later (508) moved to Paris; Franks; Glorification of the Venerable Zebulon, the father of St Nino Enlightener of Georgia, Commemorated on May 20; St Germanus the Bishop of Paris, Commemorated on May 28; St Augustine of Canterbury, Evangelizer of England, Commemorated on May 26; BERTHA and ETHELBERT, QUEEN & KING OF KENT, 616, Commemorated May 26 ; St Germanus the Bishop of Paris, Commemorated on May 28;

Belgium, 486-511, Frankish King, Clovis I
Belgium,486-511, Frankish King, Clovis I; Frankish Empire, 481-843, Belgium (Francia or Frankland): the Frankish Empire, the capital later (508) moved to Paris; Franks;

Belgium, 496, Upper Rhine River, Land of the Alemanni, Clovis, Franks
Alemanni, 496, Upper Rhine River, Land of the Alemanni, Clovis, Franks; REMIGIUS OF RHEIMS, BISHOP, APOSTLE OF THE FRANKS (1 OCTOBER 530);

Belgium, 750-804, Alcuin, Theologian for Charlemagne, York Deacon, scriptoria, cursive, rev Latin liturgy, plainchant, Filioque
England, 750-804, Alcuin, Scholar and Theologian for Charlemagne, York Deacon, scriptoria, cursive, revised Latin liturgy, plainchant, Filioque; England, 755-804, Alcuin, Scholar and Theologian for Charlemagne; York; ALCUIN, DEACON, SCHOLAR, AND ABBOT OF TOURS (20 MAY 804); was an Englishman from York, born into a noble family about 730, and educated by a pupil of Bede. become a deacon, he was made head of the cathedral school at York around 770. 781 he was asked by the Emperor Charlemagne to become his minister of education. He accepted, and established schools at many cathedrals and monasteries, and promoted learning in every way he could. the preceding years of constant wars and invasions, many ancient writings had been lost. Alcuin established scriptoria, dedicated to the copying and preservation of ancient manuscripts, both pagan and Christian. we have as much as we do of the writings of classical Roman authors is largely due to Alcuin and his scribes. is credited with the invention of cursive script, in which the letters are connected for greater speed of writing.) Alcuin, backed by Charlemagne, belongs much of the credit for the revision and organization of the Latin liturgy, the preservation of many of the ancient prayers, and the development of plainchant. and his fellow theologians at Charlemagne's capital of Aachen (or Aix-le-Chappelle) were important advocates of the doctrine that the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and the Son jointly. the East, which regarded the Emperor at Byzantium as the sole Emperor, resented Charlemagne's assumption of the title of Holy Roman Emperor, and this hardened their opposition to the aforesaid doctrine, thus contributing to the rift between East and West. by James Kiefer Venerable Bede, the Church Historian, Commemorated on May 27 ;

Belgium, 774, Siege of Pavia (773–74), Frankish Invasion of Italy, Charlemagne, Ended Lombard Kingdom
Rome, 774, Siege of Pavia (773–74); Venerable Joseph the Hymnographer, Commemorated on April 4;

Belgium, 787, Scholastic Philosophy, Scholasticism, Schools in every abby, Charlemagne, Alcuin
Belgium, 787, Scholastic Philosophy, Scholasticism, Schools in every abby, Charlemagne Belgium, 800-814, Holy Roman Emperor, Charlemagne, a Frank, Belgium ; Saint Anthony, Metropolitan of Chqondidi, and Saint Jacob, Elder of Chqondidi, Commemorated on October 13;

Belgium, 800, 9th-11th Century, Holy Roman Empire Folder, HRE Begins

Belgium, 800-899, 9th Century Folder, Holy Roman Empire, Charlemagne,

Belgium, 801-814, HRE Emperor, Charlemagne, a Frank, Belgium
Belgium, 800-814, Holy Roman Emperor, Charlemagne, a Frank, Belgium ; St Theophanes the Confessor and Hymnographer, Bishop of Nicea, Commemorated on October 11 ; CYRIL AND METHODIUS, MISSIONARIES TO THE SLAVS (14 FEB 869); ANSKAR, BISHOP AND MISSIONARY TO DENMARK AND SWEDEN (3 FEB 865); Icon of the Mother of God "œIveron", Commemorated on February 12; St Theophylactus the Bishop of Nicomedia, Commemorated on March 8; St Methodius, Equal of the Apostles and Archbishop of Moravia, Enlightener of the Slavs, Commemorated on April 6; ALCUIN, DEACON, SCHOLAR, AND ABBOT OF TOURS (20 MAY 804);

Belgium, 814-840, HRE Emperor, Louis the Pious, v over muslim Barcelona, sons' civil war
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 814-840, Louis the Pious; St Theophanes the Confessor and Hymnographer, Bishop of Nicea, Commemorated on October 11 ; ANSKAR, BISHOP AND MISSIONARY TO DENMARK AND SWEDEN (3 FEB 865); Icon of the Mother of God œIveronÂ, Commemorated on February 12; Venerable Joseph the Hymnographer, Commemorated on April 4; St Methodius, Equal of the Apostles and Archbishop of Moravia, Enlightener of the Slavs, Commemorated on April 6;

Belgium, 821-865, ANSKAR, Corbie, France (Somme River 4) Apostle to the North, encouraged by visions, Sweden, Denmark, Norway
France, 821-865, ANSKAR, Corbie, France (Somme River 4) Apostle to the North, encouraged by visions, Saxony (north Germany), Westphalia, Jutland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway (8 September 801 – 3 February 865), also known as Anskar,[3] Saint Ansgar, Saint Anschar or Oscar, was Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen in the northern part of the Kingdom of the East Franks. Ansgar became known as the "Apostle of the North" because of his travels and the See of Hamburg received the missionary mandate to bring Christianity to Northern Europe.[4][5] was the son of a noble Frankish family, born near Amiens (present day France).[5][6] After his mother's early death, Ansgar was brought up in Benedictine monastery of Corbie in Picardy.[5] According to the Vita Ansgarii ("Life of Ansgar"), when the little boy learned in a vision that his mother was in the company of Mary, mother of Jesus, his careless attitude toward spiritual matters changed to seriousness.[7] His pupil, successor, and eventual biographer Rimbert considered the visions (of which this was the first) to have been Ansgar's main life motivator. acted in the context of the phase of Christianization of Saxony (present day Northern Germany) begun by Charlemagne and continued by Charlemagne's son and successor, Louis the Pious. 822 Ansgar became one of many missionaries sent to found the abbey of Corvey (New Corbie) in Westphalia, where he became a teacher and preacher. group of monks including Ansgar were sent further north to Jutland with the king Harald Klak, who had received baptism during his exile. Harald's downfall in 827 and Ansgar's companion Autbert having died, their school for the sons of courtiers closed and Ansgar returned to Germany. in 829, after the Swedish king Björn at Hauge requested missionaries for his Swedes, King Louis sent Ansgar, now accompanied by friar Witmar from New Corbie as his assistant. preached and made converts, particularly during six months at Birka, on Lake Mälaren, where the wealthy widow Mor Frideborg extended hospitality. Ansgar organized a small congregation with her and the king's steward, Hergeir, as its most prominent members. 831 Ansgar returned to Louis' court at Worms and was appointed to the Archbishopric of Hamburg-Bremen. This was a new archbishopric, incorporating the bishoprics of Bremen and Verden and with the right to send missions into all the northern lands, as well as to consecrate bishops for them. received the mission of evangelizing pagan Denmark, Norway and Sweden. The King of Sweden decided to cast lots as to whether to admit the Christian missionaries into his kingdom. Ansgar recommended the issue to the care of God, and the lot was favorable.[5] was consecrated as a bishop in November 831, with the approval of Gregory IV. Before traveling north once again, Ansgar traveled to Rome to receive the pallium directly from the pope's hands, and was formally named legate for the northern lands. Archbishop of Reims had previously received a similar commission, but would be deposed twice before his death in 851, and never actually traveled so far north, so the jurisdiction was divided by agreement, with Ebbo retaining Sweden for himself. a time Ansgar devoted himself to the needs of his own diocese, which was still a missionary territory and had few churches. He founded a monastery and a school in Hamburg. Although intended to serve the Danish mission further north, it accomplished little. Louis the Pious died in 840, his empire was divided and Ansgar lost the abbey of Turholt, which Louis had given to endow Ansgar's work. in 845, the Danes unexpectedly raided Hamburg, destroying all the church's treasures and books. Ansgar now had neither see nor revenue, and many helpers deserted him. The new king, Louis' third son, Louis the German, did not re-endow Turholt to Ansgar, but in 847 he named the missionary to the vacant diocese of Bremen, where Ansgar moved in 848. However, since Bremen had been suffragan to the Bishop of Cologne, combining the sees of Bremen and Hamburg presented canonical difficulties. After prolonged negotiations, Pope Nicholas I would approve the union of the two dioceses in 864. this political turmoil, Ansgar continued his northern mission. The Danish civil war compelled him to establish good relations with two kings, Horik the Elder and his son, Horik II. Both assisted him until his death; Ansgar was able to secure permission to build a church in Sleswick north of Hamburg and recognition of Christianity as a tolerated religion.[8] did not forget the Swedish mission, and spent two years there in person (848–850), averting a threatened pagan reaction. In 854, Ansgar returned to Sweden when king Olof ruled in Birka. According to Rimbert, he was well disposed to Christianity. On a Viking raid to Apuole (current village in Lithuania) in Courland, the Swedes plundered the Curonians. and legacy[edit] was buried in Bremen in 865. His successor as archbishop, Rimbert, wrote the Vita Ansgarii. He noted that Ansgar wore a rough hair shirt, lived on bread and water, and showed great charity to the poor. Adam of Bremen attributed the Vita et miracula of Willehad (first bishop of Bremen) to Ansgar in Gesta Hammenburgensis ecclesiæ; Ansgar is also the reputed author of a collection of brief prayers Pigmenta (ed. J. M. Lappenberg, Hamburg, 1844).[9] Pope Nicholas I declared Ansgar a saint shortly after the missionary's death. The first actual missionary in Sweden and the Nordic countries (and organizer of the Catholic church therein), Ansgar was later declared "Patron of Scandinavia".[5] are located in Hamburg in two places: St. Mary's Cathedral (Ger.: Domkirche St. Marien) and St. Ansgar's and St. Bernard's Church (Ger.: St. Ansgar und St. Bernhard Kirche).[10] Statues of Bishop Ansgar stand in Hamburg, Copenhagen and Ribe, as well as a stone cross at Birka. His feast day (Lesser Festival) is 3 February, as it is in the Church of England.[11] Saint Ansgar statue in Hamburg a historical document and primary source written by a man whose existence can be proven historically, the Vita Ansgarii ("The Life of Ansgar") aims above all to demonstrate Ansgar's sanctity. It is partly concerned with Ansgar's visions, which, according to the author Rimbert, encouraged and assisted Ansgar's remarkable missionary feats. the course of this work, Ansgar repeatedly embarks on a new stage in his career following a vision. According to Rimbert, his early studies and ensuing devotion to the ascetic life of a monk were inspired by a vision of his mother in the presence of Mary, mother of Jesus. Again, when the Swedish people were left without a priest for some time, he begged King Horik to help him with this problem; then after receiving his consent, consulted with Bishop Gautbert to find a suitable man. The two together sought the approval of King Louis, which he granted when he learned that they were in agreement on the issue. Ansgar was convinced he was commanded by heaven to undertake this mission and was influenced by a vision he received when he was concerned about the journey, in which he met a man who reassured him of his purpose and informed him of a prophet that he would meet, the abbot Adalhard, who would instruct him in what was to happen. In the vision, he searched for and found Adalhard, who commanded, "Islands, listen to me, pay attention, remotest peoples", which Ansgar interpreted as God's will that he go to the Scandinavian countries as "most of that country consisted of islands, and also, when 'I will make you the light of the nations so that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth' was added, since the end of the world in the north was in Swedish territory".[12] Corbie (Somme River 4); ANSKAR, BISHOP AND MISSIONARY TO DENMARK AND SWEDEN (3 FEB 865); (in Latin, Ansgarius) was a monk of Saxon family, born in Corbie, France, in 801 (the year after the crowning of Charlemagne). In 826, when King Harald of Denmark asked Charlemagne's successors for missionaries, Anskar led a group to Denmark, and a few years later to Sweden. Because of unsettled political conditions, his work ran into difficulties, and Anskar withdrew into Germany, where he served as first Archbishop of Hamburg. Later, however, he helped to consecrate Gotbert, the first bishop of Sweden. The Church of Sweden honors him as its apostle, and he serves as symbol of the historic friendship and present-day connection between the Anglican Churches and the Church of Sweden. by James Kiefer the north of Germany, in Denmark, and in Sweden, Anskar, who had been a monk at Corbey, on the Weser, laboured for thirty-nine years with earnest devotion and with great success (AD 826-865). In addition to preaching the Gospel of salvation, he did much in such charitable works as the building of hospitals and the redemption of captives; and he persuaded the chief men of the country north of the Elbe to give up their trade in slaves, which had been a source of great profit to them, but which Anskar taught them to regard as contrary to the Christian religion. Anskar was made archbishop of Hamburg and Bremen, and is styled "The Apostle of the North." But he had to suffer many dangers and reverses in his endeavours to do good. At one time, when Hamburg was burnt by the Northmen, he lost his church, his monastery, his library, and other property; but he only said, with the patriarch Job, "The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord!" Then he set to work again, without being discouraged by what had befallen him, and he even made a friend of the heathen king who had led the attack on Hamburg. Anskar died in the year 865. It is told that when some of his friends were talking of miracles which he was supposed to have done, he said, "If I were worthy in my Lord's sight, I would ask of Him to grant me one miracle--that He would make me a good man." Sketches of Church History, by J. C. Robertson, publ. 1904 by SPCK, London available, "Saint Anschar", from The Catholic Encyclopedia, and The Life of Anskar, by his successor, Rimbert (also available from the Internet Archive).

Belgium, 840-855, HRE Emperor, Lothair I, governed Bavaria, civil war led to Ger and Fra
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 840-855, Lothair I; ANSKAR, BISHOP AND MISSIONARY TO DENMARK AND SWEDEN (3 FEB 865); St Photius the Patriarch of Constantinople, Commemorated on February 6; Icon of the Mother of God œIveronÂ, Commemorated on February 12; CYRIL AND METHODIUS, MISSIONARIES TO THE SLAVS (14 FEB 869) ; Venerable Joseph the Hymnographer, Commemorated on April 4;

Belgium, 844-875, HRE Emperor, Louis II of Italy, Carolingian intrvnt, Bari, Benevento, Saracens
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 850-875, Louis II of Italy; ANSKAR, BISHOP AND MISSIONARY TO DENMARK AND SWEDEN (3 FEB 865); St Photius the Patriarch of Constantinople, Commemorated on February 6; St Anthony the Patriarch of Constantinople, Commemorated on February 12; CYRIL AND METHODIUS, MISSIONARIES TO THE SLAVS (14 FEB 869) ; Venerable Joseph the Hymnographer, Commemorated on April 4;

Belgium, 855-870, Edmund oEast Anglia, King otEnglish, w Edward tConfessor Patron saint oEngland till George i1400's, Bury St Ed
England, 855-870, Edmund of East Anglia, King of the English, w Edward t Confessor Patron saint till George, when Anglo Saxons invaded they established seven kingdoms, Essex, Wessex, Sussex, Mercia, Northumbria, East Anglia, Kent, or 3 oSaxons (East, West, South) 3 oAngles, and 1 oJutes, same borders today, different accents, Celt &Continental missionaries, all 7 became Christian, Then Dane invaders, offered Edmund tbVassel if deny Christ, he would not deny C, Bury St Edmunds; England, 855-870, Edmund of East Anglia (Edmund the Martyr), King of the English, w Edward t Confessor Patron saint till George ; the Martyr (also known as St Edmund or Edmund of East Anglia, died 20 November 869)[note 1] was king of East Anglia from about 855 until his death. cult flourished in the Early and High Middle Ages, and he and Edward the Confessor were regarded as England's patron saints until they were replaced by Saint George in the fifteenth century.[2] nothing is known about Edmund. He is thought to have been of East Anglian origin and was first mentioned in an annal of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, written some years after his death. kingdom of East Anglia was devastated by the Vikings, who destroyed any contemporary evidence of his reign. writers produced fictitious accounts of his life, asserting that he was born in 841, the son of Aethelweard, an obscure East Anglian king, whom it was said Edmund succeeded when he was 14 (or alternatively that he was the youngest son of a Germanic king named Alcmund). Later versions of Edmund's life relate that he was crowned on 25 December 855 at Burna (probably Bures St Mary in Suffolk), which at that time functioned as the royal capital,[3] and that he became a model king. 869, the Great Heathen Army advanced on East Anglia and killed Edmund. According to Asser and the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, he died in battle,[4] but by later tradition, he met his death at an unidentified place known as Haegelisdun, after he refused the Danes' demand that he renounce Christ: the Danes beat him, shot him with arrows and then beheaded him, on the orders of Ivar the Boneless and his brother Ubba. According to one legend, his head was then thrown into the forest, but was found by searchers following the cries of an ethereal wolf calling out in Latin, "Hic, Hic, Hic" – "Here, Here, Here". coinage commemorating Edmund was minted from around the time East Anglia was absorbed by the kingdom of Wessex and a popular cult emerged. In about 986, Abbo of Fleury wrote of his life and martyrdom. The saint's remains were temporarily moved from Bury St Edmunds to London for safekeeping in 1010. His shrine at Bury was visited by many kings, including Canute, who was responsible for rebuilding the abbey: the stone church was rebuilt again in 1095. During the Middle Ages, when Edmund was regarded as the patron saint of England, Bury and its magnificent abbey grew wealthy, but during the Dissolution of the Monasteries his shrine was destroyed. Medieval manuscripts and works of art relating to Edmund include Abbo's Passio Sancti Eadmundi, John Lydgate's 14th-century Life, the Wilton Diptych, and a number of church wall paintings. EDMUND OF EAST ANGLIA, KING AND MARTYR (20 NOV 870); the heathen Anglo-Saxons invaded Christian Britain in the 400's, they eventually established seven kingdoms: Essex, Wessex, Sussex (East Saxons, West Saxons, and South Saxons), Mercia, Northumbria, and East Anglia (three kingdoms of the Angles), and the Jute kingdom of Kent. (The borders between these ancient kingdoms are still borders between regions speaking English with different accents today.) the influence of missionaries from the Celts and from continental Europe, these peoples became Christian, only to be faced themselves by a wave of heathen invaders. The finding of Edmund's head. See Abbo of Fleury's Life. was born about 840, became King of East Anglia in about 855, and in 870 faced a horde of marauding Danes, who moved through the countryside, burning churches and slaughtering villages wholesale. On reaching East Anglia, their leaders confronted Edmund and offered him peace on condition that he would rule as their vassal and forbid the practice of the Christian faith. refused this last condition, fought, and was captured. He was ill-treated and killed. His burial place is the town of Bury St. Edmunds. by James Kiefer

Belgium, 867-872, Pope, Adrian II, received Cyril and Methodius with great honor
Pope, 867-872, Adrian II ; holy brothers were then summoned to Rome at the invitation of the Roman Pope. Pope Adrian received them with great honor, since they brought with them the relics of the Hieromartyr Clement. Sickly by nature and in poor health, Saint Cyril soon fell ill from his many labors, and after taking the schema, he died in the year 869 at the age of forty-two. Before his death, he expressed his wish for his brother to continue the Christian enlightenment of the Slavs. Saint Cyril was buried in the Roman church of Saint Clement, whose own relics also rest there, brought to Italy from Cherson by the Enlighteners of the Slavs. Adrian II (792 – 14 December 872) was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 867 to his death. He continued the policy of his predecessor, Nicholas I. Despite seeking good relations with Louis II of Italy, he was placed under surveillance, and his wife and daughters were killed by Louis' supporters. 1 Family 2 Pontificate 3 See also 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External links was a member of a noble Roman family. In his youth, he married a woman named Stephania and had a daughter with her.[2] Adrian was selected to become pope on 14 December 867. He was already at an advanced age, and objected to assuming the papacy.[3] His wife and daughter moved with him to the Lateran Palace.[4] II maintained, but with less energy, the policies of his predecessor, Nicholas I. King Lothair II of Lotharingia, who died in 869, left Adrian to mediate between the Frankish kings with a view to secure the imperial inheritance to Lothair's brother Louis II of Italy.[5] Adrian sought to maintain good relations with Louis, since the latter's campaigns in southern Italy had the potential to free the papacy from the threat posed by the Muslims.[6] Photius I of Constantinople, shortly after the council in which he had pronounced sentence of deposition against Pope Nicholas I, was driven from the patriarchate by a new Byzantine emperor, Basil the Macedonian, who favoured Photius' rival, Ignatius. The Fourth Council of Constantinople was convoked to decide this matter. At this council Adrian was represented by legates who presided at the condemnation of Photius as a heretic, but did not succeed in coming to an understanding with Ignatius on the subject of jurisdiction over the Bulgarian Church.[5] Nicholas I, Adrian was forced to submit in temporal affairs to the interference of Emperor Louis II, who placed him under the surveillance of Bishop Arsenius of Orte, his confidential adviser, and Arsenius' nephew Anastasius the Librarian.[5] In 868, Adrian's wife and daughter were carried off and murdered by Arsenius' son Eleutherius, who had forcibly married the daughter.[7] died on 14 December 872, after exactly five years of pontificate.[5] CYRIL AND METHODIUS, MISSIONARIES TO THE SLAVS (14 FEB 869); St Boris (in Holy Baptism Michael), Equal of the Apostles, Prince and Baptizer of Bulgaria, Commemorated on May 2;

Belgium, 872-882, Pope, John VIII, resisted Muslims in S. Italy, supported Methodius for Slavs, assinated
Rome, 872-882, Pope, John VIII; John VIII (Latin: Ioannes VIII; died 16 December 882) was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 14 December 872 to his death. He is often considered one of the ablest popes of the 9th century.[1] devoted much of his papacy attempting to halt and reverse the Muslim gains in southern Italy and their march northwards. When his efforts to obtain assistance from either the Franks or the Byzantines failed, John strengthened the defenses of Rome. He supported Methodius of Thessalonica in his mission to the Slavs, defended him against the Carolingian rulers and Bavarian clergy, and authorized the translation of the Bible into Slavonic. John also extended diplomatic recognition to the Duchy of Croatia and resolved the Photian schism. John's pontificate ended with his assassination, and the papacy became significantly weaker in the aftermath. 1 Slavonic liturgy 2 Saracen incursions 3 Constantinople problems 4 Death 5 See also 6 References 7 Bibliography 8 Further reading 9 External links liturgy[edit] VIII's letter to Svatopluk I of Moravia Adrian II consecrated Methodius of Thessalonica as archbishop and supported his mission to the Slavs. Unbeknownst to Rome, Methodius was imprisoned in 870 by the Carolingian King Louis the German and Bavarian bishops, who objected to his use of the Slavonic language in the liturgy and his encroachment on their jurisdiction in Moravia.[2] Adrian II died in 872, and John VIII, a Roman native,[3] was selected to succeed him. When Bishop Anno of Freising visited Rome, John inquired about the whereabouts of the missing Methodius, but Anno lied to him. In the summer of 873, John finally learned the truth. Furious, he forbade the celebration of mass in Bavaria until Methodius was released.[4] After his release, Methodius came to Rome and convinced John to allow him to translate the Bible to Slavonic as well as to perform liturgy in Slavonic. John wrote: "He who made three main languages - Hebrew, Greek, and Roman - also made all other languages to sing his praise and glory."[5] incursions[edit] a young man, John witnessed the Arab raid against Rome. Their expansion into Italy was severely affecting the economy of the Papal States.[3] After the raids against Campania and the Sabine Hills, Pope John asked for military aid from Emperor Charles the Bald and later Count Boso of Provence.[6] His efforts failed and he was forced to pay tribute to the Emirate of Sicily.[7] The threatening Muslim military presence (which he believed was God's punishment against "bad Christians"),[8] coupled with alliances they formed with the local Christians, prompted John to promote "a new and uncompromisingly hostile view of the Saracens." This included a ban on forming alliances with the Muslims. However, his efforts proved unsuccessful,[9] partly because Christian leaders viewed his calls for unity as an excuse to assert papal authority in southern Italy.[8] 876 bull of John VIII 876, John VIII traveled throughout Campania in an effort to form an alliance among the cities of Salerno, Capua, Naples, Gaeta and Amalfi against Muslim raids. By 877, all five cities sent delegates to Traietto to formalize an alliance.[10] Pope John VIII urged Charles to come to his defence in Italy. Charles again crossed the Alps, but this expedition was received with little enthusiasm by the nobles, and even by his regent in Lombardy, Boso, and they refused to join his army. At the same time Carloman of Bavaria, son of Louis the German, entered northern Italy. Charles, ill and in great distress, started on his way back to Gaul, but died while crossing the pass of Mont Cenis on 6 October 877.[11] relatively little support from outside sources, John fell back on what resources he could command. He reinforced the walls previously restored by Pope Leo IV. As the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls was located outside the Aurelian Walls, and had been damaged in a Saracen raid, the pope fortified the basilica, the monastery, and the nearby dwellings of the peasants. He also founded a papal fleet.[5] problems[edit] 879, John recognised the reinstatement of Photios I as the legitimate patriarch of Constantinople. Photius had been condemned in 869 by Adrian II. This was undertaken mainly to appease the Byzantines, since in them he saw the only hope of removing the Arabs from Italy.[12] Some time afterward, John VIII re-confirmed the excommunication of Photius, which eventually enabled Emperor Leo VI to move against Photius.[13] was anxious that the Duchy of Croatia would follow in the steps of Bulgaria, which had recently accepted the spiritual authority of Constantinople rather than that of Rome. After the overthrow of the pro-Byzantine Zdeslav in 879, John thanked the new duke, Branimir, for returning Croatia to papal jurisdiction. In return, John recognized Croatian independence from the Carolingians.[14] VIII was assassinated in 882 by his own clerics; he was first poisoned, and then clubbed to death.[5] The motives may have been his exhaustion of the papal treasury, his lack of support among the Carolingians, his gestures towards the Byzantines, and his failure to stop the Saracen raids.[15] Without the protection of powerful magnates or the Carolingian emperor, the papacy after John VIII's reign became increasingly subject to the machinations and greedy ambition of the rival clans of the local nobility.[5] St. Photius the Patriarch of Constantinople, Commemorated on February 6; CYRIL AND METHODIUS, MISSIONARIES TO THE SLAVS (14 FEB 869);

Belgium, 875-877, HRE Emperor, Charles the Bald, heir to Gaul a
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 875-877, Charles the Bald; St Photius the Patriarch of Constantinople, Commemorated on February 6; St Anthony the Patriarch of Constantinople, Commemorated on February 12; CYRIL AND METHODIUS, MISSIONARIES TO THE SLAVS (14 FEB 869) ;

Belgium, 877-888, HRE Emperor, Charles III, Charles the Fat, L Carolingian, L Frank
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 877-888, Charles III, Charles the Fat ; St Photius the Patriarch of Constantinople, Commemorated on February 6; St Anthony the Patriarch of Constantinople, Commemorated on February 12;

Belgium, 888-891 or 962, HRE Emperor, No Emperor, , Interregum
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 888-891, No Emperor St Anthony the Patriarch of Constantinople, Commemorated on February 12;

Belgium, 891-894, HRE Emperor, Guy III of Spoleto, fought over Italy, a w Saracens, traitor
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 891-894, Guy III of Spoleto; St Anthony the Patriarch of Constantinople, Commemorated on February 12;

Belgium, 892-898, HRE Emperor, Lambert of Italy, fought over Italy w Guy, Anwulf, and Berangar
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 892-898, Lambert of Italy; St. Clement the Bishop of Ochrid and Enlightener of the Bulgarians, Commemorated on November 25; St Anthony the Patriarch of Constantinople, Commemorated on February 12;

Belgium, 896-897, Pope Steven VI, Cadaver Synod, which led to his downfall and death, prohibited Slavonic in c
Rome, 896-897, Pope Steven VI; St Clement the Bishop of Ochrid and Enlightener of the Bulgarians, Commemorated on November 25; Equal of the Apostles Clement of Ochrid, Bishop of Greater Macedonia, and his companions, Commemorated on July 27; Clement, Bishop of Ochrid, Equal of the Apostles, Nahum, Savva, Gorazd and Angelar were Slavs, disciples of Saints Cyril and Methodius (May 11). first they lived as ascetics in Moravia, where Saint Gorazd succeded Saint Methodius as bishop. He was fluent in Slavonic, Greek and Latin. Saints Clement, Nahum, Angelar and Savva were priests. Enlighteners of the Slavs were opposed by German missionaries, who had the support of the Pope and the patronage of the Moravian prince Svyatopolk. The struggle centered around the questions of the need for divine services in Slavonic, the Filioque and Saturday fasting. Pope Stephen VI prohibited the use of Slavonic in church. proponents of the three-tongued heresy (who wanted to use only Hebrew, Greek, or Latin for Church purposes), after setting aside the ancestral language of the Slavic peoples, brought the disciples of Saint Methodius to trial, including Saint Clement. They subjected them to fierce torture: dragging them through thorns, and holding them in prison for a long time, just as they had done with their spiritual Father, Saint Methodius. 886, some of the prisoners were sold to slave-traders, and ended up in the Venice marketplace. The ambassador of the Byzantine Emperor Basil the Macedonian went to Venice, ransomed the saints and brought them to Constantinople. The older confessors were banished. It is not known where Saint Gorazd went, nor where Saint Savva found shelter. Nahum and Angelar went to Bulgaria. 907 Moravia collapsed under the onslaught of the Magyars, and Moravian refugees escaped along those same paths followed earlier by the saints they had exiled. Bulgarians received the Slavonic confessors with respect and requested them to conduct divine services in the Slavonic language. The Bulgarian prince Boris sought out such people as the disciples of Saint Methodius, who labored for the enlightenment of his nation. The saints immediately began to study Slavonic books collected by the Bulgarian nobles. Angelar soon died, and Saint Clement received the appointment to teach at Kutmichivitsa, a region in southwest Macedonia. In the Eastern Church a worthy man was chosen to be a teacher, someone known for his devout life, and possessed with a gift of words. Saint Clement was a teacher while he was still in Moravia. In Bulgaria, Saint Clement worked as an instructor until 893. He organized a school at the princely court, which attained high esteem during the reign of Simeon. In southwest Macedonia he created separate schools for adults and for children. Clement instructed the children in reading and in writing. The total number of his students was enormous. Those chosen and accepted for the clergy amounted to 3500 men. In the year 893, Saint Clement became Bishop of Dremvitsa, or Velitsa, and Saint Nahum took his place. Clement was the first Bulgarian hierarch to serve, preach and write in the Slavonic language. To this end he systematically prepared clergy from among the Slavic people. The holy bishop labored for the glory of God into his old age. When his strength failed, and he was unable to fulfill his responsibilities in the cathedral, he asked Tsar Simeon to let him retire. Tsar urged the saint not to forsake the cathedral, and Saint Clement agreed to continue his episcopal service. After this he went to Ochrid, to a monastery he founded. There the saint continued with his translation activities and translated important parts of the Pentecostarion. the saint became seriously ill and departed to the Lord in the year 916. The saint’s body was placed in a coffin he made with his own hands, and was buried in Ochrid’s Saint Panteleimon monastery. Clement is considered the first Slavonic author. He not only continued the translation work begun by Saints Cyril and Methodius, but also left behind works of his own composition, the first samples of Slavonic spiritual literature. of the lessons and sermons of Saint Clement were brought to Russia, where they were read and lovingly copied by pious Russian Christians. relics of Saints Gorazd and Angelar rest near Berat in Albania, and Saint Nahum’s relics are in the monastery bearing his name, near Lake Ochrid. Saint Clement is also commemorated on November 25.

Belgium, 896-901,HRE Emperor, Arnulf of Carinthia, Carolingian , Interregum
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 896-899, Arnulf of Carinthia; St Anthony the Patriarch of Constantinople, Commemorated on February 12;

Belgium, 900-999, 10th Century Folder, Holy Roman Empire, Louis the Blind, Benegar, Ottos I II and III

Belgium, 901-915, HRE Emperor, Louis the Blind, Belgium, across Alps to d Berengar, Interregum
Holy Roman Emperor, 899-915, Louis the Blind; Louis the Blind (c. 880 – 5 June 928[2]) was the king of Provence from 11 January 887, King of Italy from 12 October 900, and briefly Holy Roman Emperor, as Louis III, between 901 and 905. He was the son of Boso, the usurper king of Provence, and Ermengard, a daughter of the Emperor Louis II.[3] Through his father, he was a Bosonid, but through his mother, a Carolingian. He was blinded after a failed invasion of Italy in 905. EARLY ABBOTS of CLUNY, 30 April 909 ;

Belgium, 909-1156, EARLY ABBOTS of CLUNY Abbey, France, golden age of C, independent of kings, over 2000 Abbys, translated koran
France, 909-1156, EARLY ABBOTS of CLUNY Abbey, France (Grosne River 1), golden age of Cluny, under Pope, independent of kings, silence, simple diet, chasity, C over 2000 Abbys, translated koran ; Cluny; Cluny Abbey; BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX, ABBOT, THEOLOGIAN, AND POET (20 AUGUST 1153); PETER ABELARD, Abbot, Theologian, Philosopher, 21 April 1142 ; EARLY ABBOTS of CLUNY, 30 April 909 ; monastery of Cluny (in France, northwest of Lyons) was a center for the reform and spiritual renewal of Western monasticism in the tenth and eleventh centuries. was founded in 909 under Abbot Berno, as a reformed monastery, observing the Benedictine Rule with a strictness unusual at the time. Many monasteries in Europe at that time were dominated by a nearby king or nobleman. It was intended that Cluny should be independent of all but papal jurisdiction. second abbot was Odo (born 879 at Tours, monk in 909, abbot in 927, died 18 November 942--one of my sources says 944). He obtained papal and royal charters which guaranteed the monastery freedom from outside interference. Under his guidance Cluny attracted many men seeking to follow its discipline, and Abbot Odo was instrumental in introducing the Cluniac observances into many Italian monasteries as well. He insisted on silence, simplicity of diet, and strict observance of chastity for his monks, but he was not rigid of temperament: many stories survive of his generosity to the poor and to prisoners. Because he had no wordly ambitions, he was often called to mediate disputes between men in power. third abbot was Aylward, who held office from 942 to 965. He was blind from 954 on. (or Maieul or Maiolus) was born at Avignon around 906, became a clergyman, was made archdeacon of Macon, and fled to Cluny in order to avoid being made bishop of Besancon. At Cluny, he was made librarian and bursar. When Abbot Aylward became blind, he appointed Maiolus his assistant, and in 965 at the death of Aylward he became abbot. Under his guidance, Cluniac influence expanded, but by example and advice rather than by jurisdiction. Maiolus had the support and admiration of the Emperors Otto I and Otto II, and the latter wanted to make him Pope in 974, but he refused. When old, he chose Odilo as his successor, and retired to contemplation and penance. He died on 11 May 994. the fifth abbot, was born around 962, became a monk as a young man, was made assistant to Mayeul in 991, and became abbot in 994. He held office for 55 years, during which time thirty abbeys accepted Cluny as their mother house, and its practices were adopted by many more which did not affiliate. Thus the Cluniac reform spread through Burgundy, Provence, Auvergne, Poitou, and much of Italy and Spain. The abbot of Cluny appointed priors for the daughter houses, which were thus permanently under a central jurisdiction, making the Cluniac monasteries (or some of them) into the first monastic order in the modern sense. In Abbot Odilo's day, there was a great deal of fighting of minor wars, raids, and skirmishes between feudal lords and others. Odilo reduced the effect of this by persuading the combatants throughout most of France and some other regions to agree that churches and monastic holdings were strictly off limits in fighting, and that there was to be a truce from Fridays to Mondays, as well as throughout all of Advent and Lent, to enable all parties to worship unmolested. Odilo wrote many sermons and poems on the mystery of the Incarnation, and his references to the role of Mary as the means through whom the Incarnation took place greatly influenced Bernard of Clairvaux a century later. Odilo instituted the observance of 2 November as All Souls' Day, a day of prayer at first for the dead brothers of the Abbey and later for all who had died in the faith of Christ. In the years from 1028 to 1033, when crop failures created great hunger among the poor in the vicinity of Cluny, he melted down and sold most of the treasures of Cluny to relieve them. As an abbot, he held both himself and his monks to a strict observance of the Rule, but he said that he would rather be damned for being too merciful than for being too severe. He died in 1049 at the age of 87. the sixth abbot, was born in 1024, the oldest son of a Burgundian nobleman (the count of Semur), entered Cluny when about 16, and became abbot when only 25 years old. He was abbot for 60 years, during which time the number of monastic houses that recognized Cluny as their mother house grew from about 60 to about 2000. It was under his abbacy that the Cluniac reform was introduced into England (at Lewes in Sussex in 1077). He increased the control of the mother house over the daughter houses (at the cost, as some have thought, of a certain flagging in their spiritual enthusiasm). Hugh was an accomplished diplomat sent at various times by nine different popes to conduct delicate negotiotiations in Hungary, Toulouse, Spain, and all over Europe. He mediated between pope and emperor in the confrontation at Canossa, and must be reckoned as one of the most influential figures of his day. He died 29 April 1109. seventh abbot, Pons (or Pontius), was a secular-minded, contentious nobleman, unsuited to be an abbot. He took office in 1109, and by 1122 had created such a turmoil and so many factions that the Pope asked him to resign. eighth Abbot of Cluny was Peter the Venerable, born in 1092, prior of Vezelay in 1112, and elected abbot of Cluny in 1122. In 1125, when Peter was away, Pons returned with a band of armed men and seized control of the monastery. The Pope intervened and imprisoned Pons, who died in prison the following year. Peter was then involved in a dispute with Bernard of Clairvaux (see 20 August), the spokesman of the Cistercian monasteries, and disposed to view the Cluniac monasteries as in some sense a rival organization, who accused the Cluniac houses of being insufficiently strict in their monastic observances. Peter, instead of replying indignantly, considered the complaints, made some changes where he thought that changes were needed, and ignored the complaints that he considered ill-grounded. In 1140, when Bernard had succeeded in having the views of Abelard condemned (see 21 April), Peter gave Abelard shelter at Cluny, persuaded the Pope to deal mildly with Abelard, and reconciled Abelard and Bernard. He refused to have anything to do with the preaching of the Second Crusade, saying that the moslems should be met, not with armies, but with scholars prepared for rational dialogue. He sponsored the first translation of the Koran into Latin, so that Christian missionaries could understand what the moslems they were about to meet believed. He served as papal envoy to Aquitaine, England, and various states in Italy. He wrote religious tracts, poems, hymns, and many letters, of which about 200 survive. He defended the Jews against persecution and false accusations. He was abbot for thirty-four years, during which time Cluny was the most influential abbey in Europe. He died 25 December 1156, and with his death the golden age of Cluny was over. But it had lasted for well over two centuries, and had done much to advance Western civilization, both in spiritual and in secular terms.

Belgium, 911, Transfer Theolgn Gregory's incrrpt Relics Nazianzos, Cappadocia, Armenia to Constantinople
Armenia, 911, Transfer Theolgn Gregory's incrrpt Relics Nazianzos, Cappadocia, Armenia (Great Road from Ephesus) to Constantinople, incorrupt relics uncovered 3times, 395,408, 911, transferred 911 to Constantinople churches: Hagia Sophia, Hagia Sophia, &Holy Resurrection, Kept there till 1204 Latin Catholic Invasion; Nazianzos; The transfer of the relics of Saint Gregory the Theologian, Commemorated on January 19; to some researchers, the uncovering of the relics of Saint Gregory the Theologian (Jan. 25) occurred (3times) Nazianzus during the reign of Emperor Arkadios (395-408), of Theodosios II (408-450), (at the transfer to C) that of Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitos (911 - 959) they were enshrined in the Church of the Holy Apostles at Constantinople. His honorable head is reverently kept in Vatopedi Monastery on Mount Athos. the year 1204, when the Western Crusaders captured Constantinople, portions of Saint Gregory’s relics were kept in the church of Hagia Sophia, in the church of the Holy Apostles, and in the church of the Holy Resurrection. St Gregory the Theologian the Archbishop of Constantinople, Commemorated January 25 ;

Belgium, 915-962, HRE Emperor, Berengar I of Italy, Interregum
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 915-962, Berengar I of Italy; Right-believing Prince Wenceslaus of the Czech Lands, Commemorated on March 4;

Belgium, 962-967, HRE Emperor, Otto I, German Ottonian Dynasty, over Hungarian Magyars
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 962-967, Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor ; Martyr Luke of Jerusalem, the Georgian, Commemorated on February 12;

Belgium, 967-996, HRE Emperor, Otto II, German Ottonian Dy, annexed Italy from Byzantium
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 967-996, Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor; Martyr Luke of Jerusalem, the Georgian, Commemorated on February 12;

Belgium, 996-1014, HRE Emperor, Otto III, German Ottonian, first German Pope after Rmn Rebellion
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 996-1014, Otto III, Holy Roman Emperor; Icon of the Mother of God œIveronÂ, Commemorated on February 12; Martyr Nicholas Dvali in Jerusalem, Commemorated on February 12;

Belgium, 1000-1099, 11th Century Folder, Holy Roman Empire, First Crusade in 1096

Belgium, 1014-1027, Henry II, HRE Emperor, Christian, Last Ottonian, North of Alps
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1014-1027, Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor; Martyr Nicholas Dvali in Jerusalem, Commemorated on February 12;

Belgium, 1027-1046, Conrad II, HRE Emprr, first of 4 Salian Es; German K, Italy, Burgandy; Church Imperial Power
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1027-1046, Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor; II (c. 989/990 - 4 June 1039), also known as Conrad the Elder and Conrad the Salic, was Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire from 1027 until his death in 1039. The first of a succession of four Salian emperors, who reigned for one century until 1125, Conrad also served as King of Germany from 1024, King of Italy from 1026, and King of Burgundy (Arelat) from 1033. son of Franconian count Henry of Speyer (also Henry of Worms) and Adelaide of Metz of the Matfriding dynasty, that had ruled the Duchy of Lorraine from 959 until 972, inherited the titles of count of Speyer and Worms during childhood after his father had died around the year 990. He extended his influence beyond his inherited lands, as he came into favor of the princes of the kingdom. When the imperial dynastic line was left without a successor after Emperor Henry II's death in 1024, on 4 September an assembly of the imperial princes appointed the 34 year-old Conrad king (Rex romanorum).[1][2] II largely continued the political course, the Renovatio regni Francorum of his Ottonian predecessor Henry II regarding the role and organisation of the Church and the status and affairs of Italy. He proceeded to evolve the Proprietary church as a basis for imperial power, preferring to appoint clerics over secular lords for important offices throughout the empire. Like Henry II before him, he insisted on his feudal claim (Honor Imperii), yet granted Italy a high degree of self-governance, near complete economic autonomy and recognized and respected the political importance and influence of the city of Rome and its curia in particular.[3][4] His reign marked a high point of medieval imperial rule during a relatively peaceful period for the empire. Upon the death of the childless King Rudolph III of Burgundy in 1032, Conrad claimed dominion over the Kingdom of Burgundy, conquered it and incorporated it into the empire.[2] The three kingdoms (Germany, Italy, and Burgundy) formed the basis of the empire as the "royal triad" (regna tria). Martyr Nicholas Dvali in Jerusalem, Commemorated on February 12;

Belgium, 1028-1095, Wulfstan oWorchester submitted tWilliam tC, became trusted advisor, opposed slave trade
England, 1028-1095, Wulfstan of Worchester, English Saint, when William tNorman conquered England i1066 he replaced Anglo-Saxib bishops with clergy fNormandy, except for Wolfstan who submitted to him after Harolds death, even though had supported King Harold, became William's trusted advisor,opposed slave trade iWestern England; England, 1062-1095, Saint of England, Wulfstan of Worchester; (c. 1008 – 20 January 1095) Bishop of Worcester from 1062 to 1095. was the last surviving pre-Conquest bishop. Wulfstan is a saint in the Western Christian churches. denomination as Wulfstan II is to indicate that he is the second Bishop Wulfstan of Worcester. however, does not prevent confusion, since the first Bishop Wulfstan – his maternal uncle – is also called Wulfstan II to denote that he was the second Archbishop of York called Wulfstan.[1] See also: History of Worcestershire § Medieval, and Anglican Diocese of Worcester § History was born about 1008 at Long Itchington in the English county of Warwickshire.[2] family lost their lands around the time King Cnut of England came to the throne.[3] was probably named after his uncle, Wulfstan II, Archbishop of York. his uncle's influence, he studied at monasteries in Evesham and Peterborough, becoming a clerk at Worcester. this time, his superiors, noting his reputation for dedication and chastity, urged him to join the priesthood. 1034 Wulfstan served as incumbent at St Mary’s Church in Hawkesbury, Gloucestershire. was here that he experienced an incident which changed his life. at his devotions he was distracted by the smell of a goose cooking in the kitchen nearby. he resolved never to touch meat again and became a vegetarian. was ordained shortly thereafter, in 1038, soon joined a monastery of Benedictines at Worcester. served as treasurer and prior of Worcester, from 1034 onwards served as the parish priest of Hawkesbury, Gloucestershire.[4][5][6] Ealdred, the bishop of Worcester as well as the Archbishop of York, was required to relinquish Worcester by Pope Nicholas, decided to have Wulfstan appointed to Worcester. addition, Ealdred continued to hold a number of the manors of the diocese.[7] was consecrated Bishop of Worcester on 8 September 1062,[8] by Ealdred. would have been more proper for him to have been consecrated by the Archbishop of Canterbury, whose province Worcester was in.[7] had deliberately avoided consecration by the current archbishop of Canterbury, Stigand, Stigand's own consecration had been uncanonical. still acknowledged that the see of Worcester was a suffragan of Canterbury. made no profession of obedience to Ealdred, offering a profession of obedience to Stigand's successor Lanfranc.[9] was a confidant of Harold Godwinson, who helped secure the bishopric for him.[10] social reformer, Wulfstan struggled to bridge the gap between the old and new regimes, and to alleviate the suffering of the poor. was a strong opponent of the slave trade, and together with Lanfranc, was mainly responsible for ending the trade from Bristol.[11] the Norman conquest of England, Wulfstan was the only English-born bishop to retain his diocese for any significant time after the Conquest (all others had been replaced or succeeded by Normans by 1075).[12][13] of Malmesbury, whose early 12th century work Vita Wulfstani provides much of our knowledge of the bishop, that pastoral care of his diocese was Wulfstan's principal interest. 1072 Wulfstan signed the Accord of Winchester. 1075, Wulfstan and the Worcestershire fyrd militia countered the Revolt of the Earls, when various magnates attempted a rebellion against William the Conqueror. founded the Great Malvern Priory, undertook much large-scale rebuilding work, Worcester Cathedral, Hereford Cathedral, Tewkesbury Abbey, and many other churches in the Worcester, Hereford and Gloucester areas. famously wept upon the destruction of the old Worcester Cathedral to make way for the new Romanesque building, decrying the loss of a building in which "so many holy and devout men have served god".[14] the Norman Conquest, he claimed that the Oswaldslow, a "triple hundred" administered by the bishops of Worcester, was free of interference by the local sheriff. right to exclude the sheriff was recorded in the Domesday Book in 1086. also administered the diocese of Lichfield when it was vacant between 1071 and 1072.[15] bishop, he often assisted the archbishops of York with consecrations, as they had few suffragan bishops. 1073 Wulfstan helped Thomas of Bayeux consecrate Radulf as Bishop of Orkney, and in 1081 helped consecrate William de St-Calais as Bishop of Durham.[7] Stained glass depicting Wulfstan at the church of the Holy Trinity, Long Itchington was responsible for the compilation by Hemming of the second cartulary of Worcester.[16] was close friends with Robert Losinga, the Bishop of Hereford, who was well known as a mathematician and astronomer.[15] the last surviving pre-Conquest bishop, died 20 January 1095 after a protracted illness, whilst washing the feet of parishioners as was his custom. [17] After his death, an altar was dedicated to him in Great Malvern Priory, next to those of Thomas Cantilupe and King Edward the Confessor. Easter of 1158, Henry II and his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine visited Worcester Cathedral and placed their crowns on the shrine of Wulfstan, vowing not to wear them again. Their son King John is buried at Worcester Cathedral.[18] after Wulfstan's death, a hagiography, or saint's life, was written about him in English by his former chancellor Colman. was translated into Latin by the medieval chronicler and historian William of Malmesbury.[19] was canonized on 14 May 1203 by Pope Innocent III.[4] became the Patron Saint of Peasants and Vegetarians. of the miracles attributed to Wulfstan was the curing of King Harold's daughter. recently founded Victorine priory in Celbridge, Ireland (paid for by Adam de Hereford) was named St. Wolstan's Priory in his honour.[20] 2008, the millennial anniversary of Wulfstan’s birth, the Friends of the Church of St Mary the Virgin, Hawkesbury, where Wulfstan served from 1034, commissioned a stained glass window to his memory. commission was carried out by a local artist, Caroline Pederick and it was dedicated in 2011 by Bishop Michael Pelham of Gloucester. three roundels, it depicts features from Wulfstan’s life; the broken chains of slavery, the goose, many vegetables and the bishop’s crosier and mitre. 2021, St. Mary's Church installed a ring of eight bells in their tower. The largest bell, weighing 600 kg, is named in honour of Wulfstan.[5] is remembered in the Church of England with a lesser festival[21] and on the Episcopal Church calendar[22] on 19 January. ^ Sometimes Wulfstan II, also known as Wolstan, Wulstan and Ulfstan WULFSTAN OF WORCESTER, BISHOP (19 JAN 1095); William the Norman conquered England in 1066, replaced most of the native Anglo-Saxon bishops with clergy from his own Normandy. most conspicuous exception was Wulfstan, Bishop of Worcester (pronounced "Wooster"), had been a supporter of the Anglo-Saxon King Harold, who submitted to William after Harold's death, became one of the King's most trusted advisors. is best remembered for his opposition to the slave trade in western England. by James Kiefer More information about Wulfstan of Worcester (who should not be confused with the slightly earlier Wulfstan, Archbishop of York) may be found on a site about the Norman conquest and at Wikipedia.

Belgium, 1046-1056, Henry III, HRE Emperor, Salian, ended Papal scism, freed Vatican from Rome nobles
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1046-1056, Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor; III (28 October 1016 – 5 October 1056), called the Black or the Pious, was Holy Roman Emperor from 1046 until his death in 1056. A member of the Salian dynasty, he was the eldest son of Emperor Conrad II of Germany and Gisela of Swabia.[1][2][3] was raised by his father, who made him Duke of Bavaria in 1026, appointed him co-ruler in 1028 and bestowed him with the duchy of Swabia and the Kingdom of Burgundy ten years later in 1038.[4] The emperor's death the following year ended a remarkably smooth and harmonious transition process towards Henry's sovereign rule, that was rather uncharacteristic for the Ottonian and Salian monarchs.[4] Henry succeeded Conrad II as Duke of Carinthia and King of Italy and continued to pursue his father's political course on the basis of virtus et probitas (courage and honesty), which led to an unprecedented sacral exaltation of the kingship. 1046 Henry ended the papal schism, was crowned Emperor by Pope Clement II, freed the Vatican from dependence on the Roman nobility and laid the foundation for its empire-wide authority. In the duchies Henry enforced sovereign royal right of disposition, thereby ensuring tighter control. In Lorraine, this led to years of conflict from which he emerged victorious. Another sphere of defiance formed in southern Germany from 1052 to 1055. Henry III died aged only 39. Modern historians, however, identify the final years of his reign as the beginning of a crisis in the Salian monarchy.[5][6] St Yaropolk the Prince of Vladimir-Volhynia, Commemorated on October 10; Martyr Nicholas Dvali in Jerusalem, Commemorated on February 12;

Belgium, 1053-1109, ANSELM OF CANTERBURY, Monk, Archbishop, Theologian, from Bec Abbey, Seine River 8, Western age of reason
England, 1053-1109, ANSELM OF CANTERBURY, Monk, Archbishop, Theologian, Monastery of Bec, Normandy, France (Bec Abbey, Seine River 8) most important western theologian between Augustine and Aquinas, also focused on reason; Monastery of Bec (Bec Abbey) ; ANSELM OF CANTERBURY, Monk, Archbishop, Theologian, 21 April 1109 ; - ANSELM OF CANTERBURY, MONK, ARCHBISHOP, THEOLOGIAN (21 APR 1109): is the most important Christian theologian in the West between Augustine and Thomas Aquinas. two great accomplishments are his Proslogium (in which he undertakes to show that Reason requires that men should believe in God), and his Cur Deus Homo? (in which he undertakes to show that Divine Love responding to human rebelliousness requires that God should become a man). was born in Italy about 1033, and in 1060 he entered the monastery of Bec in Normandy to study under Stephen Lanfranc, whom he succeeded in office, first as prior of Bec, and later as Archbishop of Canterbury. 1078 he was elected abbot of Bec. The previous year, he completed a work called the Monologium, in which he argues for the existence of God from the existence of degrees of perfection (Aquinas's Fourth Way is a variation of this argument). 1087, while still at Bec, he produced his Proslogium, an outline of his "ontological argument" for the existence of God. Taking as his text the opening of Psalm 14 ("The fool hath said in his heart: There is no God."), undertakes to show that the fool is contradicting himself -- that the concept of God is unique in that anyone who understands what is meant by the question, "Does God exist?" will see that the answer must be "Yes." The argument has received mixed reviews from the start. at once another theologian, Gaunilon, wrote, "A Reply on Behalf of the Fool." Thomas Aquinas rejected Anselm's argument as inconclusive (and is followed in this by most Roman Catholic writers today). Kant practically made his reputation as a philosopher by explaining in detail what he thought was wrong with Anselm's argument. the other hand, Leibniz and others have thought it valid. William II of England had no fondness for the Church, and at the death of Lanfranc he kept the See of Canterbury vacant until he was gravely ill, whereon he promised to let Anselm be made Archbishop. Anselm was made Archbishop (4 December 1093), the King recovered, and the two began to dispute the extent of the King's right to intervene in Church matters. Anselm went into exile in 1097 and remained in Italy for three years until the King died in 1100. During that time Anselm was instrumental in settling the doubts of the Greek bishops of southern Italy about the doctrine of the Filioque. For a discussion of the Filioque (the principal doctrinal difference between Eastern and Western Christians), see article in the Christia library. He also devoted the time to writing a book known as Cur Deus Homo? (meaning Why did God become Man?). In it he puts forward the "satisfaction theory" of the Atonement. Man's offence of rebellion against God is one that demands a payment or satisfaction. Fallen man is incapable of making adequate satisfaction, and so God took human nature upon Him, in order that a perfect man might make perfect satisfaction and so restore the human race. The success of his work may be gauged by the fact that many Christians today not only accept his way of explaining the Atonement, but are simply unaware that there is any other way. For a discussion of Anselm's theory of the Atonement and a comparison with Abelard's theory, consult the Web page mentioned above. For several other theories of the Atonement, read the Essays GEN05 RUFF, GEN06 RUFF, and GEN07 RUFF, found at the same location. five works Proslogium, Monologium, Gaunilon's Reply, Anselm on Gaunilon, and Cur Deus Homo? are available in a single paperback volume from Oxford Univ. Press. the death of King William II in 1100, Anselm returned to England at the invitation of the new king Henry I, only to quarrel with Henry about the lawful extent of the king's control over the selection of bishops and abbots (it must be remembered that these officials had civil as well as religious authority). Anselm was again in exile from 1103 to 1106. In 1107 a compromise was reached, and Anselm returned home to Canterbury, where he lived his last few years in peace, dying 21 April 1109. of Anselm is his reversal of a tendency among English bishops after the Norman Conquest to ignore or downgrade the Anglo-Saxon saints as representatives of the conquered race. Lanfranc had proposed to remove even Dunstan and Alphege from the calendar, the latter on the grounds that he had not died as a martyr for refusing to deny the Christian faith. Anselm argued that, if he was not a martyr to faith, he was a martyr to justice and to charity. From the Preface to the Proslogium: I have written the little work that follows... in the role of one who strives to raise his mind to the contemplation of God and one who seeks to understand what he believes. I acknowledge, Lord, and I give thanks that you have created your image in me, so that I may remember you, think of you, love you. But this image is so obliterated and worn away by wickedness, it is so obscured by the smoke of sins, that it cannot do what it was created to do, unless you renew and reform it. I am not attempting, O Lord, to penetrate your loftiness, for I cannot begin to match my understanding with it, but I desire in some measure to understand your truth, which my heart believes and loves. For I do not seek to understand in order that I may believe, but I believe in order to understand. For this too I believe, that "unless I believe, I shall not understand." (Isa. 7:9) A PRAYER OF ANSELM My God, I pray that I may so know you and love you that I may rejoice in you. And if I may not do so fully in this life let me go steadily on to the day when I come to that fullness ... Let me receive That which you promised through your truth, that my joy may be full A SONG OF ANSELM Jesus, as a mother you gather your people to you: you are gentle with us as a mother with her children; Often you weep over our sins and our pride: tenderly you draw us from hatred and judgement. You comfort us in sorrow and bind up our wounds: in sickness you nurse us, and with pure milk you feed us. Jesus, by your dying we are born to new life: by your anguish and labour we come forth in joy. Despair turns to hope through your sweet goodness: through your gentleness we find comfort in fear. Your warmth gives life to the dead: your touch makes sinners righteous. Lord Jesus, in your mercy heal us: in your love and tenderness remake us. In your compassion bring grace and forgiveness: for the beauty of heaven may your love prepare us. (text edited) by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1056-1084, Vacant Emperor Title till Henry IV, German King from 1053
Holy Roman Emperor, 1053-1105, Henry IV; BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX, ABBOT, THEOLOGIAN, AND POET (20 AUGUST 1153); St Yaropolk the Prince of Vladimir-Volhynia, Commemorated on October 10; Martyr Nicholas Dvali in Jerusalem, Commemorated on February 12;

Belgium, 1084-1105, Henry IV, HRE Emperor, German, controversial, appointed commoners, walk to C, Inv c
Roman Emperor, 1084-1105, Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor; IV (German: Heinrich IV; 11 November 1050 - 7 August 1106) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1084 to 1105, King of Germany from 1054 to 1105, King of Italy and Burgundy from 1056 to 1105, and Duke of Bavaria from 1052 to 1054. was the son of Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor—the second monarch of the Salian dynasty—and Agnes of Poitou. his father's death on 5 October 1056, Henry was placed under his mother's guardianship. She made grants to German aristocrats to secure their support. Unlike her late husband, she could not control the election of the popes, thus the idea of the "liberty of the Church" strengthened during her rule. Taking advantage of her weakness, Archbishop Anno II of Cologne kidnapped Henry in April 1062. He administered Germany until Henry came of age in 1065. endeavoured to recover the royal estates that had been lost during his minority. He employed low-ranking officials to carry out his new policies, causing discontent in Saxony and Thuringia. Henry crushed a riot in Saxony in 1069 and overcame the rebellion of the Saxon aristocrat Otto of Nordheim in 1071. appointment of commoners to high office offended German aristocrats, and many of them withdrew from Henry's court. insisted on his royal prerogative to appoint bishops and abbots, although the reformist clerics condemned this practice as simony (a forbidden sale of church offices). Pope Alexander II blamed Henry's advisors for his acts and excommunicated them in early 1073. Henry's conflicts with the Holy See and the German dukes weakened his position and the Saxons rose up in open rebellion in the summer of 1074. Taking advantage of a quarrel between the Saxon aristocrats and peasantry, he forced the rebels into submission in October 1075. adopted an active policy in Italy, alarming Pope Alexander II's successor, Gregory VII, who threatened him with excommunication for simony. Henry persuaded most of the German bishops to declare the Pope's election invalid on 24 January 1076. In response, the Pope excommunicated Henry and released his subjects from their allegiance. German aristocrats who were hostile to Henry called for the Pope to hold an assembly in Germany to hear Henry's case. prevent the Pope from sitting in judgement on him, Henry went to Italy as far as Canossa to meet with the Pope. His penitential "Walk to Canossa" was a success and Gregory VII had no choice but to absolve him in January 1077. Henry's German opponents ignored his absolution and elected an antiking, Rudolf of Rheinfelden, on 14 March 1077. Pope was initially neutral in the two kings' conflict, enabling Henry to consolidate his position. Henry continued to appoint high-ranking clerics, for which the Pope again excommunicated him on 7 March 1080. Most German and northern Italian bishops remained loyal to Henry and they elected the antipope Clement III. Rudolf of Rheinfelden was killed in battle and his successor, Hermann of Salm, could only exert royal authority in Saxony. From 1081, Henry launched a series of military campaigns to Italy, and Clement III crowned him emperor in Rome on 1 April 1084. of Salm died and Henry pacified Saxony with the local aristocrats' assistance in 1088. launched an invasion against the pope's principal Italian ally, Matilda of Tuscany, in 1089. She convinced Henry's elder son, Conrad II, to take up arms against his father in 1093. Her alliance with Welf I, Duke of Bavaria, prevented Henry's return to Germany until 1096 when he was reconciled with Welf. After Clement III's death, Henry did not support new antipopes, but did not make peace with Pope Paschal II. proclaimed the first Reichsfriede (imperial peace) which covered the whole territory of Germany in 1103. younger son, Henry V, forced him to abdicate on 31 December 1105. He tried to regain his throne with the assistance of Lotharingian aristocrats, but became ill and died without receiving absolution from his excommunication. preeminent role in the Investiture Controversy, his "Walk to Canossa" and his conflicts with his sons and wife established his controversial reputation, with some regarding him as the stereotype of a tyrant, and others describing him as an exemplary monarch who protected the poor. Venerable Anthony the Roman and Abbot of Novgorod, Commemorated on August 3; BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX, ABBOT, THEOLOGIAN, AND POET (20 AUGUST 1153); St Yaropolk the Prince of Vladimir-Volhynia, Commemorated on October 10; Martyr Nicholas Dvali in Jerusalem, Commemorated on February 12;

Belgium, 1096, First Crusade, Holy Roman Empire
First Crusade, 1096 ; BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX, ABBOT, THEOLOGIAN, AND POET (20 AUGUST 1153); HILDEGARD OF BINGEN, VISIONARY (17 SEP 1179); GEORGE, SOLDIER and MARTYR, 23 APRIL 303, Commemorated April 23;

Belgium, 1100, 12th-14th Century, Holy Roman Empire Folder, Crusades and Avignon Papacy

Belgium, 1100-1199, 12th Century Folder, HRE, 2nd Crusade, 3rd, and Battle of the Ice Crusade

Belgium, 1101-1142, Peter Abelard, Philosopher, rationalistic, forerunner of Rousseau
France, 1100-1142, Philosopher, Peter Abelard; Abelard (c. 1079 - 21 April 1142) was a medieval French scholastic philosopher, leading logician, theologian, teacher, musician, composer, and poet.[4] philosophy he is celebrated for his logical solution to the problem of universals via nominalism and conceptualism and his pioneering of intent in ethics.[5] Often referred to as the "Descartes of the twelfth century", he is considered a forerunner of Rousseau, Kant, and Spinoza.[6] He is sometimes credited as a chief forerunner of modern empiricism.[7] history and popular culture, he is best known for his passionate and tragic love affair and intense philosophical exchange with his brilliant student and eventual wife, Heloise d'Argenteuil. Apologist of women and of their education, Abelard founded in 1131 the first feminine monastery, meeting point of learned women, for whom he composed music. After having sent Heloise to a convent in Brittany to protect her from her abusive uncle who did not want her to pursue this forbidden love, he was castrated by men sent by this uncle. Still considering herself as his spouse even though both retired to monasteries after this event, Heloise publicly defended him when his doctrine was condemned by Pope Innocent II and Abelard was therefore considered, at that time, as a heretic. Among these opinions, Abelard professed the innocence of a woman who commits a sin out of love.[8] Catholic theology, he is best known for his development of the concept of limbo, and his introduction of the moral influence theory of atonement. He is considered (alongside Augustine) to be the most significant forerunner of the modern self-reflective autobiographer. He paved the way and set the tone for later epistolary novels and celebrity tell-alls with his publicly distributed letter, The History of My Calamities and public correspondence. law, Abelard stressed that, because the subjective intention determines the moral value of human action, the legal consequence of an action is related to the person that commits it and not merely to the action. With this doctrine, Abelard created in the Middle Ages the idea of the individual subject central to modern law. This eventually gave to School of Notre-Dame de Paris (later the University of Paris) a recognition for its expertise in the area of Law (and later led to the creation of a faculty of law in Paris). PETER ABELARD, Abbot, Theologian, Philosopher, 21 April 1142 ; BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX, ABBOT, THEOLOGIAN, AND POET (20 AUGUST 1153);

Belgium, 1105-1125, HRE Emperor, Henry V (Investiture Controversy, church and state, ability to install church officers)
Belgium, 1105-1125, Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor ; V (1081 or 1086 (probably on 11 August)[1] - 23 May 1125, in Utrecht), was King of Germany (from 1099 to 1125) and Holy Roman Emperor (from 1111 to 1125), as the fourth and last ruler of the Salian dynasty. He was made co-ruler by his father, Henry IV, in 1098. Emperor Henry IV's conflicts with the imperial princes and the struggle against the reform papacy during the Investiture Controversy, young Henry V allied himself with the opponents of his father. He forced Henry IV to abdicate on 31 December 1105 and ruled for five years in compliance with the imperial princes. He tried, unsuccessfully, to withdraw the regalia from the bishops and in order to at least preserve the previous right to invest he captured Pope Paschal II and forced him to perform his imperial coronation in 1111. Once crowned emperor, Henry departed from joint rule with the princes and resorted to earlier Salian autocratic rule. After he had failed to increase control over the church, the princes in Saxony and on the Middle and Lower Rhine, in 1121 the imperial princes forced Henry V to consent with the papacy. He surrendered to the demands of the second generation of Gregorian reformers, and in 1122 he and Pope Callixtus II ended the Investiture Controversy in the Concordat of Worms. BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX, ABBOT, THEOLOGIAN, AND POET (20 AUGUST 1153); HILDEGARD OF BINGEN, VISIONARY (17 SEP 1179);

Belgium, 1112-1153, Bernard of Clairvaux, Philosopher, Abbot, Judge, revitalization of monasticism, pope ordered crusades
Bernard of Clairvaux; of Clairvaux (Latin: Bernardus Claraevallensis; 1090 – 20 August 1153), venerated as Saint Bernard, was a Burgundian abbot and a major leader in the revitalization of Benedictine monasticism through the nascent Cistercian Order. was sent to found Clairvaux Abbey at an isolated clearing in a glen known as the Val d'Absinthe, about 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) southeast of Bar-sur-Aube. In the year 1128, Bernard attended the Council of Troyes, at which he traced the outlines of the Rule of the Knights Templar,[a] which soon became an ideal of Christian nobility. the death of Pope Honorius II in 1130, a schism arose in the church. Bernard was a major proponent of Pope Innocent II, arguing effectively for his legitimacy over the Antipope Anacletus II. 1139, Bernard attended the Second Council of the Lateran and criticized Peter Abelard vocally. Bernard advocated crusades in general and convinced many to participate in the unsuccessful Second Crusade, notably through a famous sermon at Vézelay (1146). was canonized just 21 years after his death by Pope Alexander III. In 1830 Pope Pius VIII declared him a Doctor of the Church. France, 1100-1142, Philosopher, Peter Abelard; PETER ABELARD, Abbot, Theologian, Philosopher, 21 April 1142 ; BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX, ABBOT, THEOLOGIAN, AND POET (20 AUGUST 1153); third son of a Burgundian nobleman, was born in 1090. His brothers were trained as soldiers, but Bernard from youth was destined for scholarship. One Christmas Eve as a child he had a dream about the infant Christ in the manger; and the memory of it, and consequent devotion to the mystery of the Word made flesh, remained with him throughout his life. Bernard had good prospects of success as a secular scholar, but he began to believe that he was called to the monastic life, and after a period of prayer for guidance, he decided at age 22 to enter the monastery of Citeaux (Latin Cistercium, appearing on modern maps as Corcelles-les-Citeaux), an offshoot of the Benedictines which had adopted a much stricter rule than theirs, and became the founding house of the Cistercian (Trappist) order. (Actually, the Trappists are a reformed (i.e. stricter) offshoot of the Cistercians, who are a stricter offshoot of the Benedictines.) He persuaded four of his brothers, one uncle, and 26 other men to join him. They were the first novices that Citeaux had had for several years. After three years, the abbot ordered Bernard to take twelve monks and found a new house at La Ferte. The first year was one of great hardship. They had no stores and lived chiefly on roots and barley bread. Bernard imposed such severe discipline that his monks became discouraged, but he realized his error and became more lenient. The reputation of the monastery, known as Clairvaux (48:09 N 4:47 E), spread across Europe. Many new monks joined it, and many persons wrote letters or came in person to seek spiritual advice. By the time of his death, 60 new monasteries of the Cistercian order were established under his direction. For four years after 1130 Bernard was deeply involved with a disputed papal election, championing the claims of Innocent II against his rival Anacletus II. He travelled throughout France, Germany, and Italy mustering support for his candidate (and, it should be added, preaching sermons denouncing injustices done to Jews), and returned from one of these journeys with Peter Bernard of Paganelli as a postulant for the monastery. The future Pope Eugenius III spent the next year stoking the monastery fires. Years later, Bernard wrote a major treatise of advice to Eugenius on the spiritual temptations of spiritual power. The papal election was not the only dispute in which Bernard became involved. He was highly critical of Peter Abelard, one of the most brilliant theologians of the day (see 21 April). Bernard believed that Abelard was too rationalistic in his approach, and failed to allow sufficiently for the element of mystery in the faith. When Abelard rejected some of the ways of stating Christian doctrines to which Bernard was accustomed, Bernard concluded, perhaps too hastily, that this was equivalent to rejecting the doctrine itself. A conference was scheduled at Sens, where Abelard's views were to be examined, but soon after it began Abelard decided that he was not about to get a fair hearing, announced that he was appealing to Rome, and left. He set out for Rome and got as far as Cluny, where he stopped. Peter the Venerable, the abbot (see 30 April), was a friend of both Abelard and Bernard, and managed to reconcile them before they died. of ClairvauxOne of Bernard's most influential acts, for better or worse, was his preaching of the Second Crusade. The First Crusade had given the Christian forces control of a few areas in Palestine, including the city of Edessa. When Moslem forces captured Edessa, now called Urfa and located in eastern Turkey) in 1144, King Louis VII of France (not to be confused with St. Louis IX, also a Crusader, but more than a century later) was eager to launch a crusade to retake Edessa and prevent a Moslem recapture of Jerusalem. He asked Bernard for help, and Bernard refused. He then asked the Pope to order Bernard to preach a Crusade. The pope gave the order, and Bernard preached, with spectacular results. Whole villages were emptied of able-bodied males as Bernard preached and his listeners vowed on the spot to head for Palestine and defend the Sacred Shrines with their lives. The preaching of the Crusade had an ugly side-effect. In the Rhineland, a monk named Raoul wandered about telling crowds that if they were going to fight for the faith, the logical first step was to kill the Jews who were near at hand. There were anti-Jewish riots in Mainz, (in the Rhineland), where the archbishop sheltered the Jews, or many of them, in his palace, and sent an urgent message to Bernard to come before both he and they were killed. Bernard came. He called Raoul arrogant and without authority, a preacher of mad and heretical doctrines, a liar and a murderer. Then he got nasty. Raoul sneaked off the scene, and the riots were over. From that day to this, Bernard has been remembered among Rhineland Jews and their descendants as an outstanding example of a "righteous Gentile," and many of them (e.g. Bernard Baruch) bear his name. As for the Crusade, things went wrong from the start. The various rulers leading the movement were distrustful of one another and not disposed to work together. Of the soldiers who set out (contemporary estimates vary from 100,000 to 1,500,000), most died of disease and starvation before reaching their goal, and most of the remainder were killed or captured soon after their arrival. The impact on Bernard was devastating, and so was the impact on Europe. In 1153, Bernard journeyed to reconcile the warring provinces Metz and Lorraine. He persuaded them to peace and to an agreement drawn up under his mediation, and then, in failing health, returned home to die. Bernard in controversy was fierce and not always fair, it was partly because he was a man of intense feeling and dedication, quick to respond to any real or supposed threat to what he held sacred. It is his devotional writings, not his polemical ones, that are still read today. Among the hymns attributed to him are the Latin originals of "O Sacred Head, sore wounded," "Jesus, the very thought of Thee," "O Jesus, joy of loving hearts," "Wide open are Thy hands (to pay with more than gold the awful debt of guilt and sin, forever and of old--see the Lutheran Book of Worship et alibi)," and "O Jesus, King most wonderful." His sermons on the Song of Songs, treated as an allegory of the love of Christ, are his best-known long work. by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1112-1153, BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX&Trappists, Word flesh mystery, Abelard too rational, jews named Bernard
France, 1112-1153, BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX, Burgundy, France (Morvan Hills, rivers source area, Saone drainage), Scholarship, childhood dream of word becoming flesh mystery, Citeaux 1112, founded Cistercian (Trappist) order 1115 LaFerte, 60 T monasteries by death, 1130-34 d Papal election, S Innocent II, wrote temptations of spiritual power, thought Abelard too rational, not allow mystery, Pope forced preaching 2nd Crusade, stopped anti Jew riots and Raoul, jews named Bernard, failed Crusade, hymns, sermons; Burgundy; BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX, ABBOT, THEOLOGIAN, AND POET (20 AUGUST 1153); third son of a Burgundian nobleman, was born in 1090. brothers were trained as soldiers, but Bernard from youth was destined for scholarship. Christmas Eve as a child he had a dream about the infant Christ in the manger; and the memory of it, and consequent devotion to the mystery of the Word made flesh, remained with him throughout his life. had good prospects of success as a secular scholar, but he began to believe that he was called to the monastic life, after a period of prayer for guidance, he decided at age 22 (1112) to enter the monastery of Citeaux (Latin Cistercium, appearing on modern maps as Corcelles-les-Citeaux), offshoot of the Benedictines which had adopted a much stricter rule than theirs, and became the founding house of the Cistercian (Trappist) order. the Trappists are a reformed (i.e. stricter) offshoot of the Cistercians, who are a stricter offshoot of the Benedictines.) He persuaded four of his brothers, one uncle, and 26 other men to join him. were the first novices that Citeaux had had for several years. three years (1115), the abbot ordered Bernard to take twelve monks and found a new house at La Ferte. first year was one of great hardship. They had no stores and lived chiefly on roots and barley bread. imposed such severe discipline that his monks became discouraged, but he realized his error and became more lenient. reputation of the monastery, known as Clairvaux (48:09 N 4:47 E), spread across Europe. Many new monks joined it, and many persons wrote letters or came in person to seek spiritual advice. the time of his death, 60 new monasteries of the Cistercian order were established under his direction. four years after 1130 (1130-34) Bernard was deeply involved with a disputed papal election, the claims of Innocent II against his rival Anacletus II. travelled throughout France, Germany, and Italy mustering support for his candidate it should be added, preaching sermons denouncing injustices done to Jews) and returned from one of these journeys with Peter Bernard of Paganelli as a postulant for the monastery. future Pope Eugenius III spent the next year stoking the monastery fires. Years later, Bernard wrote a major treatise of advice to Eugenius on the spiritual temptations of spiritual power. papal election was not the only dispute in which Bernard became involved. was highly critical of Peter Abelard, one of the most brilliant theologians of the day (see 21 April). believed that Abelard was too rationalistic in his approach, and failed to allow sufficiently for the element of mystery in the faith. Abelard rejected some of the ways of stating Christian doctrines to which Bernard was accustomed, Bernard concluded, perhaps too hastily, that this was equivalent to rejecting the doctrine itself. conference was scheduled at Sens, where Abelard's views were to be examined, but soon after it began Abelard decided that he was not about to get a fair hearing, announced that he was appealing to Rome, and left. set out for Rome and got as far as Cluny, where he stopped. the Venerable, the abbot (see 30 April), was a friend of both Abelard and Bernard, and managed to reconcile them before they died. Bernard of Clairvaux of Bernard's most influential acts, for better or worse, was his preaching of the Second Crusade. First Crusade had given the Christian forces control of a few areas in Palestine, including the city of Edessa. Moslem forces captured Edessa, now called Urfa and located in eastern Turkey) in 1144, King Louis VII of France to be confused with St. Louis IX, also a Crusader, but more than a century later) eager to launch a crusade to retake Edessa and prevent a Moslem recapture of Jerusalem. asked Bernard for help, and Bernard refused. then asked the Pope to order Bernard to preach a Crusade. pope gave the order, and Bernard preached, with spectacular results. Whole villages were emptied of able-bodied males as Bernard preached and his listeners vowed on the spot to head for Palestine and defend the Sacred Shrines with their lives. preaching of the Crusade had an ugly side-effect. the Rhineland, a monk named Raoul wandered about telling crowds that if they were going to fight for the faith, the logical first step was to kill the Jews who were near at hand. were anti-Jewish riots in Mainz, (in the Rhineland), where the archbishop sheltered the Jews, or many of them, in his palace, and sent an urgent message to Bernard to come before both he and they were killed. came. He called Raoul arrogant and without authority, a preacher of mad and heretical doctrines, a liar and a murderer. Then he got nasty. sneaked off the scene, and the riots were over. From that day to this, Bernard has been remembered among Rhineland Jews and their descendants as an outstanding example of a "righteous Gentile," many of them (e.g. Bernard Baruch) bear his name. for the Crusade, things went wrong from the start. various rulers leading the movement were distrustful of one another and not disposed to work together. the soldiers who set out estimates vary from 100,000 to 1,500,000) most died of disease and starvation before reaching their goal, and most of the remainder were killed or captured soon after their arrival. impact on Bernard was devastating, and so was the impact on Europe. 1153, Bernard journeyed to reconcile the warring provinces Metz and Lorraine. He persuaded them to peace and to an agreement drawn up under his mediation, then, in failing health, returned home to die. Bernard in controversy was fierce and not always fair, it was partly because he was a man of intense feeling and dedication, quick to respond to any real or supposed threat to what he held sacred. is his devotional writings, not his polemical (critical) ones, that are still read today. the hymns attributed to him are the Latin originals of "O Sacred Head, sore wounded," "Jesus, the very thought of Thee," "O Jesus, joy of loving hearts," "Wide open are Thy hands (to pay with more than gold the awful debt of guilt and sin, forever and of old--see the Lutheran Book of Worship et alibi)," and "O Jesus, King most wonderful." sermons on the Song of Songs, treated as an allegory of the love of Christ, are his best-known long work. by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1118-1179, Saint Hildegard of Bingen, visions, preacher, dear Abby
Belgium, 1118-1179, Saint Hildegard of Bingen; HILDEGARD OF BINGEN, VISIONARY (17 SEP 1179); there was once a king sitting on his throne. Around him stood great and wonderfully beautiful columns ornamented with ivory, bearing the banners of the king with great honor. Then it pleased the king to raise a small feather from the ground, and he commanded it to fly. The feather flew, not because of anything in itself but because the air bore it along. Thus am I, a feather on the breath of God." of Bingen has been called by her admirers "one of the most important figures in the history of the Middle Ages," and "the greatest woman of her time." Her time was the 1100's (she was born in 1098), the century of Eleanor of Aquitaine, of Peter Abelard and Bernard of Clairvaux, of the rise of the great universities and the building of Chartres cathedral. She was the daughter of a knight, and when she was eight years old she went to the Benedictine monastery at Mount St Disibode to be educated. The monastery was in the Celtic tradition, and housed both men and women (in separate quarters). When Hildegard was eighteen, she became a nun. Twenty years later, she was made the head of the female community at the monastery. Within the next four years, she had a series of visions, and devoted the ten years from 1140 to 1150 to writing them down, describing them (this included drawing pictures of what she had seen), and commenting on their interpretation and significance. During this period, Pope Eugenius III sent a commission to inquire into her work. The commission found her teaching orthodox and her insights authentic, and reported so to the Pope, who sent her a letter of approval. (He was probably encouraged to do so by his friend and former teacher, Bernard of Clairvaux.) She wrote back urging the Pope to work harder for reform of the Church. The community of nuns at Mount St. Disibode was growing rapidly, and they did not have adequate room. Hildegard accordingly moved her nuns to a location near Bingen, and founded a monastery for them completely independent of the double monastery they had left. She oversaw its construction, which included such features (not routine in her day) as water pumped in through pipes. The abbot they had left opposed their departure, and the resulting tensions took a long time to heal. Hildegard travelled throughout southern Germany and into Switzerland and as far as Paris, preaching. Her sermons deeply moved the hearers, and she was asked to provide written copies. In the last year of her life, she was briefly in trouble because she provided Christian burial for a young man who had been excommunicated. Her defense was that he had repented on his deathbed, and received the sacraments. Her convent was subjected to an interdict, but she protested eloquently, and the interdict was revoked. She died on 17 September 1179. Her surviving works include more than a hundred letters to emperors and popes, bishops, nuns, and nobility. (Many persons of all classes wrote to her, asking for advice, and one biographer calls her "the Dear Abby of the twelfth century.") She wrote 72 songs including a play set to music. Musical notation had only shortly before developed to the point where her music was recorded in a way that we can read today. Accordingly, some of her work is now available on compact disk, and presumably sounds the way she intended. My former room-mate, a non-Christian and a professional musician, is an enthusiastic admirer of her work and considers her a musical genius. Certainly her compositional style is like nothing else we have from the twelfth century. The play set to music is called the Ordo Virtutum and show us a human soul who listens to the Virtues, turns aside to follow the Devil, and finally returns to the Virtues, having found that following the Devil does not make one happy. She left us about seventy poems and nine books. Two of them are books of medical and pharmaceutical advice, dealing with the workings of the human body and the properties of various herbs. (These books are based on her observations and those of others, not on her visions.) I am told that some modern researchers are now checking her statements in the hope of finding some medicinal properties of some plant that has been overlooked till now by modern medicine. She also wrote a commentary on the Gospels and another on the Athanasian Creed. Much of her work has recently been translated into English, part in series like Classics of Western Spirituality, and part in other collections or separately. If your university library or bookstore cannot help you, try a Christian bookstore. If they do not have it, try a trendy (feminist, New Age, ecology) bookstore. Human Soul", an illumination of a manuscript of Hildegard/s Visions But her major works are three books on theology: Scivias ("Know the paths!"), Liber Vitae Meritorum (on ethics), and De Operatione Dei. They deal (or at least the first and third do) with the material of her visions. The visions, as she describes them, are often enigmatic but deeply moving, and many who have studied them believe that they have learned something from the visions that is not easily put into words. On the other hand, we have the recent best-seller, The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, by Oliver Sacks, Professor of Clinical Neurology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and author of Migraine and various other books. Professor Sacks is concerned with the relation of the brain to the mind, and ways in which the phsical state of the nervous system can affect our ways of perceiving reality. He views the pictures in Hildegard's books of what she saw in her visions, and says, "The style of the pictures is a clear indication that the seer suffered regularly from migraine attacks. Migraine sufferers tend to see things in this manner." And indeed, it is true that Hildegard suffered throughout her life from painful attacks of what may have been migraine. Professor Sacks hastens to add that this has nothing to do with whether her visions are authentic insights into the nature of God and His relation to the Universe. & her scribeHildegard has undergone a remarkable rise in popularity in the last thirty years, since many readers have found in her visions, or read into them, themes that seem to speak to many modern concerns. For example: Although she would have rejected much of the rhetoric of women's liberation, she never hesitated to say what she thought needed to be said, or to do what she thought needed to be done, simply because she was a woman. When Pope or Emperor needed a rebuke, she rebuked them. Her writings bring science, art, and religion together. She is deeply involved in all three, and looks to each for insights that will enrich her understanding of the others. Her use of parable and metaphor, of symbols, visual imagery, and non-verbal means to communicate makes her work reach out to many who are totally deaf to more standard approaches. In particular, non-Western peoples are often accustomed to expressing their views of the world in visionary language, and find that Hildegard's use of similar language to express a Christian view of reality produces instant rapport, if not necessarily instant agreement. Hildegard wrote and spoke extensively about social justice, about freeing the downtrodden, about the duty of seeing to it that every human being, made in the image of God, has the opportunity to develop and use the talents that God has given him, and to realize his God-given potential. This strikes a chord today. Hildegard wrote explicitly about the natural world as God's creation, charged through and through with His beauty and His energy; entrusted to our care, to be used by us for our benefit, but not to be mangled or destroyed. by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1125-1137, HRE Emperor, Lothair II, German King, reign troubled by H Dukes, successful Sicily campaign
Belgium, 1125-1137, Holy Roman Emperor, Lothair II, Holy Roman Emperor ; III, sometimes numbered Lothair II[a] and also known as Lothair of Supplinburg (1075 - 4 December 1137), was Holy Roman Emperor from 1133 until his death. He was appointed Duke of Saxony in 1106 and elected King of Germany in 1125 before being crowned emperor in Rome. The son of the Saxon count Gebhard of Supplinburg, his reign was troubled by the constant intriguing of the Hohenstaufens, Duke Frederick II of Swabia and Duke Conrad of Franconia. He died while returning from a successful campaign against the Norman Kingdom of Sicily. BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX, ABBOT, THEOLOGIAN, AND POET (20 AUGUST 1153); HILDEGARD OF BINGEN, VISIONARY (17 SEP 1179);

Belgium, 1129-1167, ALFRED OF RIEVAULX, Cistercian monastery in Yorkshire, writer, room for particular friendships
England, 1129-1167, ALFRED OF RIEVAULX, Cistercian monastery in Yorkshire, writer, room for particular friendships, fDurham, tScottish Court, for Ed, asNoble&Courtier, Suceeded but unsatisfied, master otHousehold oScottish King, tCistercian monaster aRievaulx iYorkshire, a24, Bernard oClairvaux encouraged write first work The Mirror oCharity, follow Christ all things, 1147 abbot oRievaulx till death kidney disease a57, most famous work Spiritual Friendship, OK to have special friendships, some believe only christian charity for love so no special friendships, some believe monks can not have special friendships, even no special preferences food drink, but Jesus loved John, Mary, Martha, Lazarus, even though he said All who do will oMy Father are my family ; Cistercian monastery at Rievaulx in Yorkshire; AELRED OF RIEVAULX, ABBOT (12 JANUARY 1167) ; was born in 1109 at Durham, and was sent to the Scottish court for an education that would ensure his future as a noble and courtier. succeeded, to the extent of being made Master of the Household of the King of Scotland. he found success at the court of an earthly king unsatisfying, at the age of 24 he entered the Cistercian monastery at Rievaulx in Yorkshire. of Clairvaux encouraged him to write his first work, The Mirror of Charity, which deals with seeking to follow the example of Christ in all things. 1147 he became abbot of Rievaulx, a post which he held until his death of kidney disease twenty years later at the age of 57. most famous work is called Spiritual Friendship (both it and the Mirror have been published in English by the Cistercian Press). Jesus was told that his family was waiting to see him, he replied, "All who do the will of my Father are my family." this, some Christians have drawn the conclusion that the only kind of love permissible to a Christian is Charity that is: (a) the universal benevolence that wills the good of all persons, (b) the bond that unites the Christian with Christ and through Christ with all other Christians. that Universal Benevolence is extended equally to all persons (we are to love Jones because God made him), that the bond of Christian Unity unites us equally with all our fellow Christians who are in a state of grace (we are to love Jones because Christ dwells in him). leaves any room for particular friendships, for liking Jones more than Smith because Jones shares our interest in hockey, or because Jones and we like the same sort of jokes, or come from the same part of the country and have similar childhood memories, or because Jones is an easy-going type and it is easy to relax and feel comfortable around him, or because Jones and we have a special bond of friendship, loyalty, and trust. Particular friendships are out! who do not think that every Christian must renounce particular friendships believe that every monastic must do so. many religious houses, where the monks or nuns walk two by two into chapel or the dining hall or while pacing about during the daily hour of recreation, the superior will make a point of constantly shifting partners, anyone form a liking for onepartner more than another. does not apply just to friends. It is sometimes held that no monk ought to allow himself any preferences in food or drink.) this view, Aelred wrote that it is compatible with the highest degree of Christian perfection to take special pleasure in the company of particular friends. point out that we are told that Jesus loved John, and Mary, and Martha, and Lazarus, and that this probably means that he found their company congenial. by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1137-1190, HRE Emperor, Frederick 1, long reign, extraordinary org, Red Beard, Italian campgns, R of Law
Belgium, 1137-1190, Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick 1, Belgium; Barbarossa (1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I, was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death 35 years later. was elected King of Germany at Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aachen on 9 March 1152. He was crowned King of Italy on 24 April 1155 in Pavia and emperor by Pope Adrian IV on 18 June 1155 in Rome. Two years later, the term sacrum ("holy") first appeared in a document in connection with his empire.[1] He was later formally crowned King of Burgundy, at Arles on 30 June 1178. was named Barbarossa by the northern Italian cities which he attempted to rule: Barbarossa means "red beard" in Italian;[2] in German, he was known as Kaiser Rotbart, which has the same meaning. The prevalence of the Italian nickname, even in later German usage, reflects the centrality of the Italian campaigns to his career. his imperial election, Frederick was by inheritance Duke of Swabia (1147–1152, as Frederick III). He was the son of Duke Frederick II of the Hohenstaufen dynasty and Judith, daughter of Henry IX, Duke of Bavaria, from the rival House of Welf. therefore, descended from the two leading families in Germany, making him an acceptable choice for the Empire's prince-electors. consider him among the Holy Roman Empire's greatest medieval emperors. He combined qualities that made him appear almost superhuman to his contemporaries: his longevity, his ambition, his extraordinary skills at organization, his battlefield acumen and his political perspicacity. contributions to Central European society and culture include the reestablishment of the Corpus Juris Civilis, or the Roman rule of law, which counterbalanced the papal power that dominated the German states since the conclusion of the Investiture Controversy. died in 1190 in Asia Minor while leading an army in the Third Crusade. HILDEGARD OF BINGEN, VISIONARY (17 SEP 1179); St Balthasar of the Magi, Commemorated on December 25; St Gaspar of the Magi, Commemorated on December 25; St Melchior of the Magi, Commemorated on December 25;

Belgium, 1147-1150, Second Crusade, HRE, after fall of Edessa
Belgium, 1145-1149, Second Crusade, Holy Roman Empire ; BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX, ABBOT, THEOLOGIAN, AND POET (20 AUGUST 1153); EARLY ABBOTS of CLUNY, 30 April 909 ;

Belgium, 1176-1200, Hugh oLincoln, Falaise Glove, riots a Jews, wit, temper, love fDefenceless, washed lepers, animals loved him
England, 1176-1200, Hugh of Lincoln, Carthusian, Henry II friend and sponsor, Monastery, Land comensation, vacant bisoprics, Lincoln, forresters, meaningless lucrative post, Falaise glove, faced riots against Jews, refused money grant for King Richard the Lion Hearted, legal precedent, King John's amulet, wit, temper, love for defenceless, washed lepers, animals loved him; Avalon, France; Chartreuse Mountains (Carthusians); Carthusians - Grande Chartreuse; HUGH OF LINCOLN, BISHOP, PROTECTOR OF THE OPPRESSED (17 NOV 1200); a sign of his remorse for his role in the murder of the Archbishop Thomas a Becket, King Henry II founded the first house in England of the strict monastic order called the Carthusians. Difficulties arose with the first two priors, and a French noble recommended Hugh de Avalon, who at that time had been a monk at the mother house of the order for 17 years. his arrival in England in 1176, Hugh found that the building of the monastery had not begun. Worse, no compensation had been paid to those who would have to lose their lands and property to make room for it. refused to take office until these persons had been paid "to the last penny." He intervened again on behalf of the builders, whose pay was not forthcoming. Henry loved him for his plain speaking. "I do not despair of you," Hugh said to him at their first interview; "I know how much your many occupations interfere with the health of your soul." impressed by his frankness, swore that while he lived he should not leave his kingdom, and took so much pleasure in his conversation, and paid so much heed to his counsels, that a rumor arose that Hugh was his son. biographer wrote that "of all men only Hugh could bend that rhinosceros to his will." Henry was in danger of shipwreck, he cried out, "If only my Carthusian Hugh were awake and at prayer, God would not forget me." This affection never diminished, though Hugh dared to oppose the king, particularly in the matter of keeping bishoprics vacant in order that their revenues might fall to the king's treasury. of the worst examples was Lincoln, which, except for a few months, had been without a bishop for eighteen years. Hugh was elected to the post in 1186, and his monastic superiors ordered him to accept. After so long a period of neglect, there was great need of reform. employed priests of great piety and learning, and made the fullest use of his authority in disciplining his clergy. He took a stern view of the ill-treatment of the poor by the royal foresters, and when a subject of the church of Lincoln suffered at their hands he excommunicated their chief. He also refused to appoint a royal favorite to a meaningless but lucrative post. Henry was furious, and summoned him to his presence. He came, and Henry turned away his face and would not speak, but by way of ignoring his presence took out a torn glove and began to sew it. At last Hugh said, "How like you are to your relations at Falaise." king might have resented this allusion to the humble birth of William the Conqueror's mother, the daughter of a glove-maker, but he only laughed, and the quarrel was made up. against the Jews broke out in England at the time of the Third Crusade. In defence of the persecuted, Hugh faced armed mobs in Lincoln, Stamford and Northampton and compelled their submission. refused to raise money for the foreign wars of King Richard the Lion-Heart, calmed the king's rage with a kiss, and persisted in his refusal: was the first clear example on record of the refusal of a money-grant demanded directly by the crown, and an important legal precedent. Richard said, "If all bishops were like my lord of Lincoln, not a prince among us could raise his head against them." His relations with King John were less happy. John showed him an amulet, which he said was sacred and would preserve him. Hugh replied, "Do not put your trust in lifeless stone, but only in the living and heavenly stone, our Lord Jesus Christ." following Easter he preached at length on the duties of kings, and the king slipped out partway through. tireless, and forgetful of self, Hugh also had wit, a temper that he described as "more biting than pepper," and a great love and concern for children and the defenceless. He visited leper-houses and washed the ulcerous limbs of their inmates. He was fond of animals, and they of him. Birds and squirrels came readily to his hand. He had a swan that would feed from his hand, follow him about, and keep guard over his bed, so that no one could approach it without being attacked. In 1200 the king sent him on an embassy to France. His mission was a success, but he took ill and returned to England to die on 16 November 1200. John Ruskin called him "the most beautiful sacerdotal (priestly) figure known to me in history." by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1189-1192, Third Crusade, after Jerusalem loss, Angevin England, France and HRE
Belgium, 1189-1192, Third Crusade, Holy Roman Empire;

Belgium, 1190-1221, Saint Dominic, Founder of the Dominicans, preachers in poverty, philosophy, theology, logical argument, OP
Spain, 1190-1221, Saint Dominic, Founder of the Dominicans; DOMINIC, PREACHER, FRIAR, MISSIONARY (8 AUGUST 1221); was born in Castile, in Spain, in 1170. He entered the priesthood, and eventually became prior of the canons of the cathedral chapter (the clergy who formed the staff of the cathedral and conducted the daily worship services) at Osma (42:52 N 3:03 W). turning point of his life came in 1206, when he was chosen to accompany the bishop on a visit to southern France, to an area held by the Albigenses. These were a heretical sect more or less directly descended from the early Gnostics and Manichees. They were dualists, holding that there are two gods, one the god of goodness, light, truth, and spirit, and the other the god of evil, darkness, error, and matter. The material universe is the creation of the bad god. The good god made the souls of men, and the bad god kidnapped them and imprisoned them in bodies of flesh. their first night in Albigensian country, they stayed at an inn where the innkeeper was an Albigensian. Dominic engaged him in conversation, they sat up all night talking, and by dawn the man was ready to become an orthodox Christian. then on, Dominic knew what his calling in life was. Dominic and his bishop undertook to study the Albigensian beliefs and to engage in public debates with their opponents. They seemed to be making some progress, but in 1207 the bishop died, and in the same year the murder by Albigenses of the papal legate moved the pope to declare a crusade against the Albigenses, which lasted about five years. continued to preach and to debate where he could, and in 1215 he founded an order of preachers, who were to live in poverty, and devote themselves to studying philosophy and theology and to combatting false doctrine by logical argument rather than by the use of force. was convinced that a major obstacle to the conversion of heretics was the material wealth of some of the clergy, which made plausible the accusation that they were concerned for their purses and not for the glory of God, and made workers indisposed to hear them. He therefore determined that the brothers of his order should live lives of poverty and simplicity, being no better off materially than those they sought to convert. he was in Rome, seeking authorization for his order from the Pope, the Pope gave him a tour of the treasures of the Vatican, and remarked complacently (referring to Acts 3:6), "Peter can no longer say, 'Silver and gold have I none.'" Dominic turned and looked straight at the Pope, and said, "No, and neither can he say, 'Rise and walk.'" He got the permission he was seeking, and the order grew and flourished. Officially known as the Order of Preachers (hence the letters O.P. after the name of a member), it was informally known as the Dominicans, or the Blackfriars (from the color of their cloaks). Two of their best-known members are Albertus Magnus (Albert the Great, 1200-1280, see 15 Nov), who was famous for his learning in numerous fields, and his pupil Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274, see 28 Jan), who wrote reconciling Christian theology with the philosophy of Aristotle, which was then being rediscovered in western Europe, and was thought by many to be a threat to Christianity. In later years, the Order forgot its commitment to "logic and persuasion, not force" as the means of bringing men to Christian truth, and many of its members were active in the Inquisition. St. Dominic & St. Catherine St. Dominic & St. Catherine was three times offered a bishopric, and refused, believing that he was called to another work. He died in 1220 in Bologna, Italy, after a preaching mission to Hungary. His emblem in art is a dog with a torch in its mouth, a pun on his name (the Dominicans are sometimes called the "Domini canes", the hounds of the Lord), and a reference to his relying on the power of preaching. by James Kiefer FRANCIS OF ASSISI, FRIAR (4 OCT 1226);

Belgium, 1190-1220, DOMINIC, Castile, Order of Preachers, combat w logical argument, poverty, inquisition
Spain and Portugal, 1190-1220, DOMINIC, Castile, Spain (Madrid, Henares River Mouth, Jarama River 1), Dominicans founder, Order of Preachers, studied philosophy and theology, combat w logical argument not force, poverty commitment, Blackfriars, Albert Magnus, Thomas Aquinas, inquisition; Crown of Castile (court of Ferdinand and Isabella, the rulers of Spain); DOMINIC, PREACHER, FRIAR, MISSIONARY (8 AUGUST 1221); was born in Castile, in Spain, in 1170. entered the priesthood, and eventually became prior of the canons of the cathedral chapter (the clergy who formed the staff of the cathedral and conducted the daily worship services) at Osma (42:52 N 3:03 W). turning point of his life came in 1206, when he was chosen to accompany the bishop on a visit to southern France, to an area held by the Albigenses. were a heretical sect more or less directly descended from the early Gnostics and Manichees. were dualists, holding that there are two gods, one the god of goodness, light, truth, and spirit, and the other the god of evil, darkness, error, and matter. material universe is the creation of the bad god. The good god made the souls of men, and the bad god kidnapped them and imprisoned them in bodies of flesh. their first night in Albigensian country, they stayed at an inn where the innkeeper was an Albigensian. engaged him in conversation, they sat up all night talking, and by dawn the man was ready to become an orthodox Christian. then on, Dominic knew what his calling in life was. and his bishop undertook to study the Albigensian beliefs and to engage in public debates with their opponents. They seemed to be making some progress, but in 1207 the bishop died, and in the same year the murder by Albigenses of the papal legate moved the pope to declare a crusade against the Albigenses, which lasted about five years. continued to preach and to debate where he could, and in 1215 he founded an order of preachers, who were to live in poverty, and devote themselves to studying philosophy and theology and to combatting false doctrine by logical argument rather than by the use of force. was convinced that a major obstacle to the conversion of heretics was the material wealth of some of the clergy, which made plausible the accusation that they were concerned for their purses and not for the glory of God, and made workers indisposed to hear them. therefore determined that the brothers of his order should live lives of poverty and simplicity, being no better off materially than those they sought to convert. he was in Rome, seeking authorization for his order from the Pope, the Pope gave him a tour of the treasures of the Vatican, and remarked complacently (referring to Acts 3:6), "Peter can no longer say, 'Silver and gold have I none.'" turned and looked straight at the Pope, and said, "No, and neither can he say, 'Rise and walk.'" got the permission he was seeking, and the order grew and flourished. known as the Order of Preachers (hence the letters O.P. after the name of a member), it was informally known as the Dominicans, or the Blackfriars (from the color of their cloaks). of their best-known members are Albertus Magnus (Albert the Great, 1200-1280, see 15 Nov), who was famous for his learning in numerous fields, and his pupil Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274, see 28 Jan), who wrote reconciling Christian theology with the philosophy of Aristotle, which was then being rediscovered in western Europe, and was thought by many to be a threat to Christianity. later years, the Order forgot its commitment to "logic and persuasion, not force" as the means of bringing men to Christian truth, and many of its members were active in the Inquisition. St. Dominic & St. Catherine St. Dominic & St. Catherine was three times offered a bishopric, and refused, believing that he was called to another He died in 1220 in Bologna, Italy, after a preaching mission to Hungary. His emblem in art is a dog with a torch in its mouth, a pun on his name (the Dominicans are sometimes called the "Domini canes", the hounds of the Lord), and a reference to his relying on the power of preaching. by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1191-1197, HRE Emperor, Henry VI, well educated, poet, Byzantine ransom, Sicily, d before his Crusade
Belgium, 1191-1197, Holy Roman Emperor, Henry VI; VI (Heinrich VI) (November 1165 – 28 September 1197), a member of the Hohenstaufen dynasty, was King of Germany (King of the Romans) from 1169 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1191 until his death. From 1194 he was also King of Sicily. was the second son of Emperor Frederick Barbarossa and his consort Beatrix of Burgundy. in the Latin language, as well as Roman and canon law, Henry was also a patron of poets and a skilled poet himself. 1186 he was married to Constance of Sicily, the posthumous daughter of the Norman king Roger II of Sicily. Henry, stuck in the Hohenstaufen conflict with the House of Welf until 1194, had to enforce the inheritance claims by his wife against her nephew Count Tancred of Lecce. Henry's attempt to conquer the Kingdom of Sicily failed at the siege of Naples in 1191 due to an epidemic, and following his retreat Empress Constance was captured. Based on an enormous ransom for the release and submission of King Richard I of England, he conquered Sicily in 1194; however, the intended unification with the Holy Roman Empire ultimately failed due to the opposition of the Papacy. threatened to invade the Byzantine Empire after 1194 and succeeded in extracting a ransom, the Alamanikon, from Emperor Alexios III Angelos in return for cancelling the invasion. He made the Kingdom of Cyprus and the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia formal subjects of the empire and compelled Tunis and Tripolitania to pay tribute to him. 1195 and 1196, he attempted to turn the Holy Roman Empire from an elective to a hereditary monarchy, the so-called Erbreichsplan, but met strong resistance from the prince-electors and abandoned the plan. pledged to go on crusade in 1195 and began preparations. A revolt in Sicily was crushed in 1197. The Crusaders set sail for the Holy Land that same year but Henry died of illness at Messina on 28 September 1197 before he could join them. death plunged the Empire into the chaos of the German throne dispute for the next 17 years. DOMINIC, PREACHER, FRIAR, MISSIONARY (8 AUGUST 1221);

Belgium, 1195-1350, Northern Crusades, ordered by Pope Celestine III, 1242 Battle of the Ice, Pskov Lake
Russia, Novgorod, 1195-1350, Northern Crusades, ordered by Pope Celestine III; Rome, 1191-1198, Pope, Celestine III; Novgorod, 1242, Great Battle of the Ice of Pskov Lake, defeat of Teutonic Knights; Repose of St Alexander Nevsky, Commemorated on November 23;

Belgium, 1198-1215, HRE Emperor, Otto IV, excommunicated by Pope Innocent III
Belgium, 1198-1215, Holy Roman Emperor, Otto IV; IV (1175 – 19 May 1218) was one of two rival kings of Germany from 1198 on, sole king from 1208 on, and Holy Roman Emperor from 1209 until he was forced to abdicate in 1215. only German king of the Welf dynasty, he incurred the wrath of Pope Innocent III and was excommunicated in 1210. DOMINIC, PREACHER, FRIAR, MISSIONARY (8 AUGUST 1221); CLARE OF ASSISI, NUN (11 AUGUST 1253) ; FRANCIS OF ASSISI, FRIAR (4 OCT 1226);

Belgium, 1200-1299, 13th Century Folder, Holy Roman Empire, 4th-9th and Northern Crusades

Belgium, 1201-1205, Fourth Crusade, HRE, to recapture Muslim Jerusalem, but sack of C
Belgium, 1200-1205, Fourth Crusade, Holy Roman Empire;

Belgium, 1202-1204, Fourth Crusade, HRE, Sack of Constantinople
Belgium, 1122-1124, Fourth Crusade, Holy Roman Empire;

Belgium, 1202-1226, Francis of Assisi, Franciscans, Lady Poverty, no money, no property
Rome, 1202-1226, Francis of Assisi, Franciscans, Lady Poverty, no money, no property; Assisi; FRANCIS OF ASSISI, FRIAR (4 OCT 1226); was born in 1182, the son of a wealthy cloth merchant. His early years were frivolous, but an experience of sickness and another of military service were instrumental in leading him to reflect on the purpose of life. day, in the church of San Damiano, he seemed to hear Christ saying to him, "Francis, repair my falling house." He took the words literally, and sold a bale of silk from his father's warehouse to pay for repairs to the church of San Damiano. His father was outraged, and there was a public confrontation at which his father disinherited and disowned him, and he in turn renounced his father's wealth--one account says that he not only handed his father his purse, but also took off his expensive clothes, laid them at his father's feet, and walked away naked. He declared himself "wedded to Lady Poverty", renounced all material possessions, and devoted himself to serving the poor. his day the most dreaded of all diseases was something known as leprosy. (It is probably not the same as either the modern or the Biblical disease of that name.) Lepers were kept at a distance and regarded with fear and disgust. Francis cared for them, fed them, bathed their sores, and kissed them. Since he could not pay for repairs to the Church of San Damiano, he undertook to repair it by his own labors. He moved in with the priest, and begged stones lying useless in fields, shaping them for use in repairing the church. He got his meals, not by asking for money so that he might live at the expense of others, but by scrounging crusts and discarded vegetable from trash-bins, and by working as a day laborer, insisting on being paid in bread, milk, eggs, or vegetables rather than in money. Soon a few companions joined him. Dante in his Paradiso has Aquinas say of him: me tell you of a youth whose aristocratic father disowned him because of his love for a beautiful lady. She had been married before, to Christ, and was so faithful a spouse to Him that, while Mary only stood at the foot of the Cross, she leaped up to be with Him on the Cross. These two of whom I speak are Francis and the Lady Poverty. As they walked along together, the sight of their mutual love drew men's hearts after them. Bernard saw them and ran after them, kicking off his shoes to run faster to so great a peace. Giles and Sylvester saw them, kicked off their shoes and ran to join them.... three years, in 1210, the Pope authorized the forming of the Order of Friars Minor, commonly called the Franciscans. ("Friar" means "brother," as in "fraternity", and "minor" means "lesser" or "younger." I take the meaning to be that a Franciscan, meeting another Christian, is to think, "I am your brother in Christ, and your younger brother at that, bound to defer to you and to give you precedence over myself." and his companions took literally the words of Christ when he sent his disciples out to preach (M 10:7-10): as you go, saying, "The kingdom of Heaven is at hand." ... You have received the Gospel without payment, give it to others as freely. Take no gold, or silver, or copper in your belts, no bag for your journey, no spare garment, nor sandals, nor staff. would have no money, and no property, individually or collectively. Their task was to preach, "using words if necessary," but declaring by word and action the love of God in Christ. Francis was partial to a touch of the dramatic (see his parting from his father, for example), and it was probably he who set up the first Christmas manger scene, to bring home the Good News of God made man for our salvation, home to men's hearts and imaginations as well as to their intellects. 1219, Francis went to the Holy Land to preach to the moslems. He was given a pass through the enemy lines, and spoke to the Sultan, Melek-al-Kamil. Francis proclaimed the Gospel to the Sultan, who replied that he had his own beliefs, and that moslems were as firmly convinced of the truth of Islam as Francis was of the truth of Christianity. Francis proposed that a fire be built, and that he and a moslem volunteer would walk side by side into the fire to show whose faith was stronger. The Sultan said he was not sure that a moslem volunteer could be found. Francis then offered to walk into the fire alone. The Sultan who was deeply impressed but remained unconverted. Francis proposed an armistice between the two warring sides, and drew up terms for one; the Sultan agreed, but, to Francis's deep disappointment, the Christian leaders would not. Francis returned to Italy, but a permanent result was that the Franciscans were given custody of the Christian shrines then in moslem hands. preaching to the birds, by giottoBack in Italy and neighboring countries, the Order was suffering from its own success. Then, as now, many persons were deeply attracted by Francis and his air of joy, abandonment, and freedom. What is overlooked is that these were made possible only by his willingness to accept total poverty, not picturesque poverty but real dirt, rags, cold, and hunger, and lepers with real pus oozing from their sores and a real danger of infection. Many idealistic young men were joining the Order in a burst of enthusiasm and then finding themselves not so sure that such extremes of poverty were really necessary. When there were only a few friars, they were all known to Francis personally, and the force of his personality kept the original ideals of the Order alive in them. Now that the Order was larger, this was no longer enough. In 1220 Francis resigned as minister-general of the Order, and in 1221 he agreed to a new and modified rule, which he did not approve, but could not resist. He died on 4 October 1226. The Franciscan split into the Conventual Franciscans, who held a limited amount of property in common, and the Spiritual Franciscans, who disavowed all property. They taught that Christ and the twelve apostles had held no property, singly or jointly. This view offended those who held property, and was declared to be heretical (proof text, J 18:10; Jesus said to Peter, "Put up THY sword...."). In 1318, several Spiritual Franciscans were burned at the stake in Marseilles. story is told of the days when the friars first began to have permanent houses. A beggar came by when Brother Juniper was at the gate and asked for a little money. Brother Juniper said, "There is no money in the house. But wait a minute. Last week someone gave us an altar cloth with little silver bells attached. We don't need those. I will cut them off for you. They will be as good as money." And he did. When the sacristan learned what had happened, he complained to the prior, who said, "We are fortunate that he did not give away the cloth itself. But send him to me, and I will scold him." Brother Juniper came, and the prior scolded him until he was hoarse. Brother Juniper noticed that the prior was hoarse, and went to the kitchen and cooked him some mint sauce. He brought it to the prior, who had gone to bed. He said, "Father Prior, get up and eat this mint sauce. It will be good for your throat." The prior said, "I don't want any mint sauce. Go away and let me sleep." Brother Juniper said, "It's good sauce, and will be good for your throat." The prior said, "Go away, I don't want it." Brother Juniper said, "Well, if you won't eat it, how about holding the candle while I eat it?" This was too much for the prior. He got up and they both ate. the first known letter from Francis to all Christians: how happy and blessed are those who love the Lord and do as the Lord himself said in the gospel: You shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart and your whole soul, and your neighbor as yourself. Thereofore, let us love God and adore him with pure heart and mind. This is his particular desire when he says: True worshipers adore the Father in spirit and truth. For all who adore him must do so in the spirit of truth. Let us also direct to him our praises and prayers, saying: "Our Father, who are in heaven," since we must always pray and never grow slack. Furthermore, let us produce worthy fruits of penance. Let us also love our neightbors as ourselves. Let us have charity and humility. Let us give alms because these cleanse our souls from the stains of sin. Men lose all the material things they leave behind in this world, but they carry with them the reward of their charity and the alms they give. For these they will recieve from the Lord the reward and recompense they deserve. We must not be wise and prudent according to the flesh. Rather we must be sinple, humble and pure. We should never desire to be over others. Instead, we ought to be servants who are submissive to every human being for God's sake. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on all who live in this way and persevere in it to the end. He will permanently dwell in them. They will be the Father's children who do his work. They are the spouses, brothers and mothers of our Lord Jesus Christ. Many readers are enthusiastic about St. Francis of Assisi, a biography of Francis by G K Chesterton. A reader of these essays has also recommended The Biography of Saint Francis of Assisi by Englebert by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1202-1226, FRANCIS OF ASSISI, Franciscans, wedded Lady Poverty, serving p, preach by word&action love of God in Christ
Rome, 1202-1226, FRANCIS OF ASSISI, FRIAR, Umbria, Italy (Tiber River 1), Franciscans, repair my falling house, bale of silk for church of St Damiano, wedded to Lady Poverty, serving poor, leprosy, begged stones, paid in bread, 1210 order of brothers, out to preach, by word and action the love of God in Christ, touch of drama, Christmas manger, 1219 Holy Land Moslems, faith fire story, proposed armistice, sultan agreed, C not, custody shrines, split conventual v spiritual franciscans, s franciscans heretical burned a stake 1318; Assisi; FRANCIS OF ASSISI, FRIAR (4 OCT 1226); was born in 1182, the son of a wealthy cloth merchant. early years were frivolous, but an experience of sickness and another of military service were instrumental in leading him to reflect on the purpose of life. day, in the church of San Damiano, he seemed to hear Christ saying to him, "Francis, repair my falling house." took the words literally, and sold a bale of silk from his father's warehouse to pay for repairs to the church of San Damiano. father was outraged, and there was a public confrontation at which his father disinherited and disowned him, and he in turn renounced his father's wealth--one account says that he not only handed his father his purse, but also took off his expensive clothes, laid them at his father's feet, and walked away naked. declared himself "wedded to Lady Poverty", renounced all material possessions, and devoted himself to serving the poor. his day the most dreaded of all diseases was something known as leprosy. is probably not the same as either the modern or the Biblical disease of that name.) were kept at a distance and regarded with fear and disgust. cared for them, fed them, bathed their sores, and kissed them. he could not pay for repairs to the Church of San Damiano, he undertook to repair it by his own labors. He moved in with the priest, and begged stones lying useless in fields, shaping them for use in repairing the church. got his meals, not by asking for money so that he might live at the expense of others, but by scrounging crusts and discarded vegetable from trash-bins, and by working as a day laborer, insisting on being paid in bread, milk, eggs, or vegetables rather than in money. a few companions joined him. Dante in his Paradiso has Aquinas say of him: me tell you of a youth whose aristocratic father disowned him because of his love for a beautiful lady. She had been married before, to Christ, and was so faithful a spouse to Him that, while Mary only stood at the foot of the Cross, she leaped up to be with Him on the Cross. These two of whom I speak are Francis and the Lady Poverty. As they walked along together, the sight of their mutual love drew men's hearts after them. Bernard saw them and ran after them, kicking off his shoes to run faster to so great a peace. Giles and Sylvester saw them, kicked off their shoes and ran to join them.... three years, in 1210, the Pope authorized the forming of the Order of Friars Minor, commonly called the Franciscans. ("Friar" means "brother," as in "fraternity", and "minor" means "lesser" or "younger." I take the meaning to be that a Franciscan, meeting another Christian, is to think, "I am your brother in Christ, and your younger brother at that, bound to defer to you and to give you precedence over myself." and his companions took literally the words of Christ when he sent his disciples out to preach (M 10:7-10): as you go, saying, "The kingdom of Heaven is at hand." ... You have received the Gospel without payment, give it to others as freely. Take no gold, or silver, or copper in your belts, no bag for your journey, no spare garment, nor sandals, nor staff. would have no money, and no property, individually or collectively. task was to preach, "using words if necessary," but declaring by word and action the love of God in Christ. was partial to a touch of the dramatic (see his parting from his father, for example), and it was probably he who set up the first Christmas manger scene, to bring home the Good News of God made man for our salvation, home to men's hearts and imaginations as well as to their intellects. 1219, Francis went to the Holy Land to preach to the moslems. was given a pass through the enemy lines, and spoke to the Sultan, Melek-al-Kamil. Francis proclaimed the Gospel to the Sultan, who replied that he had his own beliefs, and that moslems were as firmly convinced of the truth of Islam as Francis was of the truth of Christianity. proposed that a fire be built, and that he and a moslem volunteer would walk side by side into the fire to show whose faith was stronger. The Sultan said he was not sure that a moslem volunteer could be found. Francis then offered to walk into the fire alone. The Sultan who was deeply impressed but remained unconverted. Francis proposed an armistice between the two warring sides, and drew up terms for one; the Sultan agreed, but, to Francis's deep disappointment, the Christian leaders would not. returned to Italy, but a permanent result was that the Franciscans were given custody of the Christian shrines then in moslem hands. Francis preaching to the birds, by giotto in Italy and neighboring countries, the Order was suffering from its own success. Then, as now, many persons were deeply attracted by Francis and his air of joy, abandonment, and freedom. What is overlooked is that these were made possible only by his willingness to accept total poverty, not picturesque poverty but real dirt, rags, cold, and hunger, and lepers with real pus oozing from their sores and a real danger of infection. idealistic young men were joining the Order in a burst of enthusiasm and then finding themselves not so sure that such extremes of poverty were really necessary. there were only a few friars, they were all known to Francis personally, and the force of his personality kept the original ideals of the Order alive in them. Now that the Order was larger, this was no longer enough. 1220 Francis resigned as minister-general of the Order, and in 1221 he agreed to a new and modified rule, which he did not approve, but could not resist. died on 4 October 1226. Franciscan split into the Conventual Franciscans, who held a limited amount of property in common, and the Spiritual Franciscans, who disavowed all property. They taught that Christ and the twelve apostles had held no property, singly or jointly. view offended those who held property, and was declared to be heretical (proof text, J 18:10; Jesus said to Peter, "Put up THY sword...."). In 1318, several Spiritual Franciscans were burned at the stake in Marseilles. story is told of the days when the friars first began to have permanent houses. A beggar came by when Brother Juniper was at the gate and asked for a little money. Brother Juniper said, "There is no money in the house. But wait a minute. Last week someone gave us an altar cloth with little silver bells attached. We don't need those. I will cut them off for you. They will be as good as money." And he did. When the sacristan learned what had happened, he complained to the prior, who said, "We are fortunate that he did not give away the cloth itself. But send him to me, and I will scold him." Brother Juniper came, and the prior scolded him until he was hoarse. Brother Juniper noticed that the prior was hoarse, and went to the kitchen and cooked him some mint sauce. He brought it to the prior, who had gone to bed. He said, "Father Prior, get up and eat this mint sauce. It will be good for your throat." The prior said, "I don't want any mint sauce. Go away and let me sleep." Brother Juniper said, "It's good sauce, and will be good for your throat." The prior said, "Go away, I don't want it." Brother Juniper said, "Well, if you won't eat it, how about holding the candle while I eat it?" This was too much for the prior. He got up and they both ate. the first known letter from Francis to all Christians: how happy and blessed are those who love the Lord and do as the Lord himself said in the gospel: You shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart and your whole soul, and your neighbor as yourself. let us love God and adore him with pure heart and mind. This is his particular desire when he says: True worshipers adore the Father in spirit and truth. For all who adore him must do so in the spirit of truth. Let us also direct to him our praises and prayers, saying: "Our Father, who are in heaven," since we must always pray and never grow slack. Furthermore, let us produce worthy fruits of penance. Let us also love our neightbors as ourselves. Let us have charity and humility. Let us give alms because these cleanse our souls from the stains of sin. lose all the material things they leave behind in this world, but they carry with them the reward of their charity and the alms they give. these they will recieve from the Lord the reward and recompense they deserve. must not be wise and prudent according to the flesh. we must be sinple, humble and pure. should never desire to be over others. we ought to be servants who are submissive to every human being for God's sake. Spirit of the Lord will rest on all who live in this way and persevere in it to the end. He will permanently dwell in them. They will be the Father's children who do his work. They are the spouses, brothers and mothers of our Lord Jesus Christ. readers are enthusiastic about St. Francis of Assisi, a biography of Francis by G K Chesterton. A reader of these essays has also recommended The Biography of Saint Francis of Assisi by Englebert by James Kiefer BENEDICT, FOUNDER OF WESTERN MONASTICISM (11 JULY 540); was born at Nursia (Norcia) in Umbria, Italy, around 480 AD. He was sent to Rome for his studies, but was repelled by the dissolute life of most of the populace, and withdrew to a solitary life at Subiaco. A group of monks asked him to be their abbot, but some of them found his rule too strict, and he returned alone to Subiaco. Again, other monks called him to be their abbot, and he agreed, founding twelve communities over an interval of some years. His chief founding was Monte Cassino, an abbey which stands to this day as the mother house of the world-wide Benedictine order. of Monte CassinoTotila the Goth visited Benedict, and was so awed by his presence that he fell on his face before him. Benedict raised him from the ground and rebuked him for his cruelty, telling him that it was time that his iniquities should cease. Totila asked Benedict to remember him in his prayers and departed, to exhibit from that time an astonishing clemency and chivalry in his treatment of conquered peoples. drew up a rule of life for monastics, a rule which he calls "a school of the Lord's service, in which we hope to order nothing harsh or rigorous." The Rule gives instructions for how the monastic community is to be organized, and how the monks are to spend their time. An average day includes about four hours to be spent in liturgical prayer (called the Divinum Officium -- the Divine Office), five hours in spiritual reading and study, six hours of labor, one hour for eating, and about eight hours for sleep. The Book of Psalms is to be recited in its entirety every week as a part of the Office. Benedictine monk takes vows of "obedience, stability, and conversion of life." That is, he vows to live in accordance with the Benedictine Rule, not to leave his community without grave cause, and to seek to follow the teaching and example of Christ in all things. Normal procedure today for a prospective monk is to spend a week or more at the monastery as a visitor. He then applies as a postulant, and agrees not to leave for six months without the consent of the Abbot. (During that time, he may suspect that he has made a mistake, and the abbot may say, "Yes, I think you have. Go in peace." Alternately, he may say, "It is normal to have jitters at this stage. I urge you to stick it out a while longer and see whether they go away." Many postulants leave before the six months are up.) After six months, he may leave or become a novice, with vows for one year. After the year, he may leave or take vows for three more years. After three years, he may leave, take life vows, or take vows for a second three years. After that, a third three years. After that, he must leave or take life vows (fish or cut bait). Thus, he takes life vows after four and a half to ten and a half years in the monastery. At any point in the proceedings at which he has the option of leaving, the community has the option of dismissing him. Benedict, by Fra AngelicoThe effect of the monastic movement, both of the Benedictine order and of similar orders that grew out of it, has been enormous. We owe the preservation of the Holy Scriptures and other ancient writings in large measure to the patience and diligence of monastic scribes. In purely secular terms, their contribution was considerable. In Benedict's time, the chief source of power was muscle, whether human or animal. Ancient scholars apparently did not worry about labor-saving devices. The labor could always be done by oxen or slaves. But monks were both scholars and workers. A monk, after spending a few hours doing some laborious task by hand, was likely to think, "There must be a better way of doing this." The result was the systematic development of windmills and water wheels for grinding grain, sawing wood, pumping water, and so on. The rotation of crops (including legumes) and other agricultural advances were also originated or promoted by monastic farms. The monks, by their example, taught the dignity of labor and the importance of order and planning. For details, see The Mediaeval Machine: The Industrial Revolution of the Middle Age, by Jean Gimpel, (Holt Rinehart & Winston, 1976; Penguin, 1977, ISBN 0-14-00-4514-7). by James Kiefer CLARE OF ASSISI, NUN (11 AUGUST 1253) ; Offreduccio, born in 1194, was the daughter of a wealthy family in Assisi. she was eighteen years old, she heard a sermon by Francis of Assisi, and was moved by it to follow the example of the Franciscan brothers and vow herself to a life of poverty. Her family was horrified, and brought her back home by force; but one night, in a gesture both tactical and symbolic, she slipped out of her house through "the door of the dead" (a small side door that was traditionally opened only to carry out a corpse) and returned to the house of the Franciscans. Francis cut off her hair, and placed her in a nearby convent. Later a house was found for her, and she was eventually joined by two of her sisters, her widowed mother, and several members of the wealthy Ubaldini family of Florence. Clare's best friend, Pacifica, could not resist, and joined them, too. sisters of her order came to be known informally as Minoresses (Franciscan brothers are Friars Minor = "lesser brothers") or as Poor Clares. When the order was formed, Francis suggested Clare for the Superior. But she refused the position until she turned twenty-one. They devoted themselves to prayer, nursing the sick, and works of mercy for the poor and neglected. adopted a rule of life of extreme austerity (more so than of any other order of women up to that time) and of absolute poverty, both individually and collectively. They had no beds. They slept on twigs with patched hemp for blankets. Wind and rain seeped through cracks in the ceilings. They ate very little, with no meat at all. Whatever they ate was food they begged for. Clare made sure she fasted more than anyone else. Despite this way of life, or perhaps because of it, the followers of Clare were the most beautiful young girls from the best families of Assisi. community of Poor Clares continues to this day, both in the Roman and in the Anglican communions. by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1204, Sack of Constantinople by the Fourth Crusade, 1202-1204
Constantinople, 1204, Sack of Constantinople by the Fourth Crusade Byzantine Emperor, 1205-1215, Michael I Komnenos Doukas; Greatmartyr Marina (Margaret) of Antioch in Pisidia, Commemorated on July 17; Translation of the relics of St Hilarion the Bishop of Meglin in Bulgaria, Commemorated on October 21;

Belgium, 1204-1261, Latin Empire, Crusader State
Constantinople, 1204-1261, Latin Empire, Crusader State; The Latin Empire, also referred to as the Latin Empire of Constantinople, was a feudal Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire. The Latin Empire was intended to replace the Byzantine Empire as the Western-recognized Roman Empire in the east, with a Catholic emperor enthroned in place of the Eastern Orthodox Roman emperors. The Fourth Crusade had originally been called to retake the Muslim-controlled city of Jerusalem but a sequence of economic and political events culminated in the Crusader army sacking the city of Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire. Originally, the plan had been to restore the deposed Byzantine Emperor Isaac II Angelos, who had been usurped by Alexios III Angelos, to the throne. The crusaders had been promised financial and military aid by Isaac's son Alexios, with which they had planned to continue to Jerusalem. When the crusaders reached Constantinople the situation quickly turned volatile and while Isaac and Alexios briefly ruled, the crusaders did not receive the payment they had hoped for. In April 1204, they captured and plundered the city's enormous wealth. The crusaders selected their own emperor from among their own ranks, Baldwin of Flanders, and divided the territory of the Byzantine Empire into various new vassal crusader states. The Latin Empire's authority was immediately challenged by Byzantine rump states led by the Laskaris family (connected to the Angelos dynasty of 1185-“1204) in Nicaea and the Komnenos family (which had ruled as Byzantine Emperors 1081-“1185) in Trebizond. From 1224 to 1242 the Komnenos Doukas family, also connected to the Angeloi, challenged Latin authority from Thessalonica. The Latin Empire failed to attain political or economic dominance over the other Latin powers that had been established in former Byzantine territories in the wake of the Fourth Crusade, especially Venice, and after a short initial period of military successes it went into a steady decline due to constant war with Bulgaria to the north and the various Byzantine claimants. Eventually, the Nicaean Empire recovered Constantinople and restored the Byzantine Empire under Michael VIII Palaiologos in 1261. The last Latin emperor, Baldwin II, went into exile, but the imperial title survived, with several pretenders to it, until the 14th century. Like the term "Byzantine Empire", "Latin Empire" was not a contemporary term used by the empire itself or the rest of the world. The Byzantines referred to the Latin Empire as the Frankokratia and the Latin Emperors themselves referred to the empire by various names, commonly imperium Constantinopolitanum (lit. Empire of Constantinople), but also imperium Romaniae (lit. Empire of Romania) and imperium Romanorum (lit. Empire of the Romans). The term Romania ("Land of the Romans") had been used unofficially by the population of the Byzantine Empire for their country for centuries.

Belgium, 1204-1261, Holy Roman Crusaders rule Constantinople
Constantinople, 1204-1261, Holy Roman Crusaders rule Constantinople; Constantinople, 1204, Sack of Constantinople by the Fourth Crusade Byzantine Emperor, 1205-1215, Michael I Komnenos Doukas; Greatmartyr Marina (Margaret) of Antioch in Pisidia, Commemorated on July 17; Translation of the Image œNot-Made-By-Hands of our Lord Jesus Christ from Edessa to Constantinople, the ThirdœFeast of the Savior in August, Commemorated on August 16 Translation of the relics of St Hilarion the Bishop of Meglin in Bulgaria, Commemorated on October 21;

Belgium, 1204-1226, Holy Roman Saint, Francis of Assisi, founder of the Franciscans
Belgium, 1204-1226, Holy Roman Saint, Francis of Assisi; of Assisi (1181 or 1182 - 3 October 1226), venerated as Saint Francis of Assisi, also known in his ministry as Francesco, was an Italian Catholic friar, deacon, mystic, and preacher.[3] He founded the men's Order of Friars Minor, the women's Order of St. Clare, the Third Order of St. Francis and the Custody of the Holy Land. Francis is one of the most venerated religious figures in Christianity.[1] Gregory IX canonized Francis on 16 July 1228. with Catherine of Siena, he was designated patron saint of Italy. later became associated with patronage of animals and the natural environment, and it became customary for churches to hold ceremonies blessing animals on or near his feast day of 4 October. 1219, he went to Egypt in an attempt to convert the Sultan to put an end to the conflict of the Crusades.[4] this point, the Franciscan Order had grown to such an extent that its primitive organizational structure was no longer sufficient. He returned to Italy to organize the order. Once his community was authorized by the Pope, he withdrew increasingly from external affairs. is known for his love of the Eucharist.[5] In 1223, Francis arranged for the first Christmas live nativity scene.[a][6][7] to Christian tradition, in 1224 he received the stigmata during the apparition of a Seraphic angel in a religious ecstasy,[8] which would make him the first person in Christian tradition to bear the wounds of Christ's Passion.[9] died during the evening hours of 3 October 1226, while listening to a reading he had requested of Psalm 142 (141). DOMINIC, PREACHER, FRIAR, MISSIONARY (8 AUGUST 1221); FRANCIS OF ASSISI, FRIAR (4 OCT 1226);

Belgium, 1209-1229, Sixth Crusade, Holy Roman Empire, Albigensian, near Albi, against neo Gnostics
Belgium, 1209-1229, Sixth Crusade, Holy Roman Empire; Albigensian Crusade; Albigensian Crusade or the Cathar Crusade (1209–1229; French: Croisade des albigeois, Occitan: Crosada dels albigeses) was a 20-year military campaign initiated by Pope Innocent III to eliminate Catharism in Languedoc, in southern France. Crusade was prosecuted primarily by the French crown and promptly took on a political aspect, resulting in not only a significant reduction in the number of practising Cathars, but also a realignment of the County of Toulouse in Languedoc, bringing it into the sphere of the French crown, and diminishing both Languedoc's distinct regional culture and the influence of the counts of Barcelona. Cathars originated from an anti-materialist reform movement within the Bogomil churches of the Balkans calling for what they saw as a return to the Christian message of perfection, poverty and preaching, combined with a rejection of the physical to the point of starvation. reforms were a reaction against the often perceived scandalous and dissolute lifestyles of the Catholic clergy in southern France. Their theology, neo-Gnostic in many ways, was basically dualist. Several of their practices, especially their belief in the inherent evil of the physical world, conflicted with the doctrines of the Incarnation of Christ and Catholic sacraments. led to accusations of Gnosticism and attracted the ire of the Catholic establishment. They became known as the Albigensians, because there were many adherents in the city of Albi and the surrounding area in the 12th and 13th centuries. 1022 and 1163, the Cathars were condemned by eight local church councils, the last of which, held at Tours, declared that all Albigenses should be put into prison and have their property confiscated. The Third Lateran Council of 1179 repeated the condemnation. Innocent III's diplomatic attempts to roll back Catharism were met with little success. After the murder of his legate Pierre de Castelnau in 1208, and suspecting that Raymond VI, Count of Toulouse was responsible, Innocent III declared a crusade against the Cathars. He offered the lands of the Cathar heretics to any French nobleman willing to take up arms. 1209 to 1215, the Crusaders experienced great success, capturing Cathar lands and perpetrating acts of extreme violence, often against civilians. From 1215 to 1225, a series of revolts caused many of the lands to be regained by the Cathars. A renewed crusade resulted in the recapturing of the territory and effectively drove Catharism underground by 1244. The Albigensian Crusade had a role in the creation and institutionalization of both the Dominican Order and the Medieval Inquisition. The Dominicans promulgated the message of the Church to combat alleged heresies by preaching the Church's teachings in towns and villages, while the Inquisition investigated heresies. Because of these efforts, by the middle of the 14th century, any discernible traces of the Cathar movement had been eradicated. The Albigensian Crusade is considered by many historians to be an act of genocide against the Cathars.[3][4][5]

Belgium, 1214-1253, CLARE OF ASSISI, Poor Clares, wealthy, Francis' poverty ex, begged food, ate little, no meat, most beautiful
Rome, 1214-1253, CLARE OF ASSISI, Umbria, Italy (Tiber River 1), Poor Clares, wealthy Florence Ubaldini daughter, followed Francis' example, of poverty, door of t dead, begged for food, ate little, no meat, most beautiful; CLARE OF ASSISI, NUN (11 AUGUST 1253) ; Offreduccio, born in 1194, was the daughter of a wealthy family in Assisi. she was eighteen years old, she heard a sermon by Francis of Assisi, and was moved by it to follow the example of the Franciscan brothers and vow herself to a life of poverty. family was horrified, and brought her back home by force; but one night, in a gesture both tactical and symbolic, she slipped out of her house through "the door of the dead" (a small side door that was traditionally opened only to carry out a corpse) and returned to the house of the Franciscans. cut off her hair, and placed her in a nearby convent. Later a house was found for her, and she was eventually joined by two of her sisters, her widowed mother, and several members of the wealthy Ubaldini family of Florence. best friend, Pacifica, could not resist, and joined them, too. sisters of her order came to be known informally as Minoresses (Franciscan brothers are Friars Minor = "lesser brothers") or as Poor Clares. the order was formed, Francis suggested Clare for the Superior. But she refused the position until she turned twenty-one. devoted themselves to prayer, nursing the sick, and works of mercy for the poor and neglected. adopted a rule of life of extreme austerity so than of any other order of women up to that time) of absolute poverty, both individually and collectively. had no beds. They slept on twigs with patched hemp for blankets. and rain seeped through cracks in the ceilings. ate very little, with no meat at all. they ate was food they begged for. made sure she fasted more than anyone else. this way of life, or perhaps because of it, the followers of Clare were the most beautiful young girls from the best families of Assisi. community of Poor Clares continues to this day, both in the Roman and in the Anglican communions. by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1216-1250, HRE Emperor, Frederick II, 6th and Northern Crusades, King of Jrslm, pope conflicts, interregnum
Belgium, 1216-1250, Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick II; DOMINIC, PREACHER, FRIAR, MISSIONARY (8 AUGUST 1221); CLARE OF ASSISI, NUN (11 AUGUST 1253) ; LOUIS IX, KING OF FRANCE (25 AUGUST 1270); FRANCIS OF ASSISI, FRIAR (4 OCT 1226); St Eupraxia, Princess of Pskov, Commemorated on October 16; ELIZABETH OF HUNGARY, PRINCESS AND PHILANTHROPIST (19 NOV 1231); THOMAS AQUINAS, PRIEST, FRIAR, AND THEOLOGIAN (28 JAN 1274);

Belgium, 1217-1221, Fifth Crusade, led by King Andrew II of Hungary, to Cairo
Hungary, 1217-1221, Fifth Crusade, led by King Andrew II of Hungary ; Hungary, 1205-1235, King, Andrew II of Hungary ; ELIZABETH OF HUNGARY, PRINCESS AND PHILANTHROPIST (19 NOV 1231) ;

Belgium, 1220-1287, Simon tMyrrhgusher& his star's New Bethlehem or Simonopetra monastey, Mt Athos, many miracles
Greece, Mt Athos, 1220-1287, Simon tMyrrhgusher, Simonopetra monastery, Mt Athos, Simon's ascetic life glorified bMany miracles, founder New Bethlehem Monastery now named after him Simonopetra, One night bright star like star oBethlehem appeared near his cave, seeing motionless star several nights, first thought demonic temptation, but on night oNativity star moved over high rock & MOG voice said Here simon you must lay foundations of your monastery for salvation osouls, for the star he built New Bethlehem m, he died 1287; New Bethlehem or Simonopetra monastery; Monastery (Greek: Σιμωνόπετρα, literally: "Simon's Rock"), also Monastery of Simonos Petra (Greek: Μονή Σίμωνος Πέτρας), is an Eastern Orthodox monastery in the monastic state of Mount Athos in Greece. Simonopetra ranks thirteenth in the hierarchy of the Athonite monasteries. monastery is located in the southern coast of the Athos peninsula, between the Athonite port of Dafni and Osiou Grigoriou monastery. While the southern coast of Athos is quite rugged in general, the particular site upon which the monastery is built is exceptionally harsh. It is built on top of a single huge rock, practically hanging from a cliff 330 metres over the sea.[1] The monastery currently houses 54 monks, and the hegumen is Archimandrite Eliseus. monastery was founded during the 13th century by Simon the Athonite, who was later sanctified by the Eastern Orthodox Church as Saint Simon the Myrrh-bearer. holds that Simon, while dwelling in a nearby cave, saw a dream in which the Theotokos instructed him to build a monastery on top of the rock, him that she would protect and provide for him and the monastery. original monastery was called by Simon "New Bethlehem" (Greek: Νέα Βηθλεέμ) and is to this day dedicated to the Nativity of Jesus. 1364, the Serbian despot Jovan Uglješa funded the renovation and expansion of the monastery. pilgrim Isaiah wrote that, by the end of the 15th century, the monastery was Bulgarian.[2] 1581, Simonopetra was destroyed by a fire, in which a large portion of the monks died. the monastery's abbot traveled to the Danubian Principalities hoping to raise funds to rebuild the monastery. most important donor was Michael the Brave, Prince of Wallachia, who donated large portions of land as well as money to the monastery. monastery was also burnt in 1626, the last great fire happened in 1891, after which the monastery was rebuilt to its current form. recent centuries, the monks of the monastery were traditionally from Ionia in Asia Minor. during the mid 20th century the brotherhood was greatly thinned out because of a great reduction in the influx of new monks. current brotherhood originates from the Holy Monastery of Great Meteoron in Meteora as in 1973 the Athonite community headed by Archimandrite Emilianos decided to repopulate the almost abandoned monastery. Venerable Simon the Myrrh-gusher of Mt Athos, Commemorated December 28 ; Simon the Myrrh-Gusher lived an ascetical life on Mt Athos, and was glorified by many miracles. was the founder of the New Bethlehem monastery, now known as Simonopetra. night, he saw a star of such brightness that he thought it must be the Star of Bethlehem. the star remain motionless for several nights, he thought at first that it was a demonic temptation. the eve of the Lord’s Nativity the star stood over a high rock, and Saint Simon heard a voice say, “Here, O Simon, you must lay the foundations of your monastery for the salvation of souls.” built the monastery and called it New Bethlehem. reposed in the year 1287, and his holy relics exude myrrh.

Belgium, 1223-1280, Albertus Magnus, Dominican, greatest German philosopher and theologian of Middle Ages
Belgium, 1223-1280, Holy Roman Saint, Albertus Magnus, Dominican; Magnus[a] OP (c. 1200 - 15 November 1280), also known as Saint Albert the Great or Albert of Cologne, was a German Catholic Dominican friar, philosopher and bishop. Later canonised as a Catholic saint, he was known during his lifetime as Doctor universalis and Doctor expertus and, late in his life, the sobriquet Magnus was appended to his name.[6] Scholars such as James A. Weisheipl and Joachim R. Söder have referred to him as the greatest German philosopher and theologian of the Middle Ages.[7] The Catholic Church distinguishes him as one of the 36 Doctors of the Church. DOMINIC, PREACHER, FRIAR, MISSIONARY (8 AUGUST 1221);

Belgium, 1226-1231, Elizabeth of Hungary, PRINCESS AND PHILANTHROPIST, Wartburg, Thuringa, Germany
Hungary, 1226-1231, Elizabeth of Hungary, PRINCESS AND PHILANTHROPIST, Wartburg, Thuringa, Germany ; Wartburg is a castle. ELIZABETH OF HUNGARY, PRINCESS AND PHILANTHROPIST (19 NOV 1231); numerous "St. Elizabeth's Hospitals" throughout the world are for the most part named, not for the Biblical Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, but for this princess of Hungary. was concerned for the relief of the poor and the sick, and with her husband's consent she used her dowry money for their relief. During a famine and epidemic in 1226, while her husband was away in Italy, she sold her jewels and established a hospital where she nursed the sick, and opened the royal granaries to feed the hungry. her husband's death in 1227, her inlaws, who opposed her "extravagances," expelled her from Wartburg. an arrangement was negotiated with them that gave her a stipend. became a Franciscan tertiary (lay associate) and devoted the remainder of her life to nursing and charity. She sewed garments to clothe the poor, and went fishing to feed them. by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1226-1231, Elizabeth of Hungary, Halych ancestors, Princess, Thuringa, Marburg Hospital, German Ancestress
Hungary, 1226-1231, Princess, Elizabeth of Hungary; of Hungary (7 July 1207 - 17 November 1231),[6] also known as Saint Elizabeth of Thuringia or Saint Elisabeth of Thuringia, a princess of the Kingdom of Hungary, Landgravine of Thuringia, Germany, and a greatly venerated Catholic saint who was an early member of the Third Order of St. Francis, by which she is honored as its patroness.[7] was married at the age of 14, and widowed at 20.[8] After her husband's death she sent her children away and regained her dowry, using the money to build a hospital where she herself served the sick. She became a symbol of Christian charity after her death at the age of 24 and was canonized on 25 May 1235. life and marriage[edit] was the daughter of King Andrew II of Hungary and Gertrude of Merania. Her mother's sister was Hedwig of Andechs, wife of Duke Heinrich I of Silesia.[6] ancestry included many notable figures of European royalty, going back as far as Vladimir the Great of the Kievan Rus. According to tradition, she was born in Hungary, possibly in the castle of Sárospatak (discussed below), on 7 July 1207.[9][10][11] sermon printed in 1497 by the Franciscan friar Osvaldus de Lasco, a church official in Hungary, is the first to name Sárospatak as Elizabeth's birthplace, perhaps building on local tradition. The veracity of this account is not without reproach: Osvaldus also translates the miracle of the roses (see below) to Elizabeth's childhood in Sárospatak and has her leave Hungary at the age of five.[12] to a different tradition she was born in Pozsony, Hungary, (present-day Bratislava, Slovakia), where she lived in the Castle of Posonium until the age of four. was brought to the court of the rulers of Thuringia in central Germany, to be betrothed to Louis IV, Landgrave of Thuringia[8] (also known as Ludwig IV), a future union which would reinforce political alliances between the families.[a] She was raised by the Thuringian court and would have been familiar with the local language and culture. St. Elizabeth washing a sick man a scene from the main altar of St. Elisabeth Cathedral in Kassa, 15th century 1221, at the age of fourteen, Elizabeth married Louis; the same year he was enthroned as Landgrave, and the marriage appears to have been happy. inclinations, influences[edit] 1223, Franciscan friars arrived, and the teenage Elizabeth not only learned about the ideals of Francis of Assisi, but started to live them.[14] was not upset by his wife's charitable efforts, believing that the distribution of his wealth to the poor would bring eternal reward; he is venerated in Thuringia as a saint, though he was never canonized by the Church.[15] was also about this time that the priest and later inquisitor Konrad von Marburg gained considerable influence over Elizabeth when he was appointed as her confessor. In the spring of 1226, when floods, famine, and plague wrought havoc in Thuringia, Louis, a staunch supporter of the Hohenstaufen Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, represented Frederick II at the Imperial Diet held in Cremona. assumed control of affairs at home and distributed alms in all parts of their territory, even giving away state robes and ornaments to the poor. St. Elizabeth spinning wool for the poor by Marianne Stokes (1895) life changed irrevocably on 11 September 1227 when Louis, en route to join the Sixth Crusade, died of a fever in Otranto, Italy, just a few weeks before the birth of her daughter Gertrude. hearing the news of her husband's death, Elizabeth reportedly said, "He is dead. He is dead. It is to me as if the whole world died today."[16] His remains were returned to Elizabeth in 1228 and entombed at the Abbey of Reinhardsbrunn. Louis' death, his brother, Henry Raspe, assumed the regency during the minority of Elizabeth's eldest child, Hermann (1222–1241). bitter arguments over the disposal of her dowry — a conflict in which Konrad was appointed as the official Defender of her case by Pope Gregory IX — Elizabeth left the court at Wartburg and moved to Marburg in Hesse. to 1888 it was believed, on account of the testimony of one of Elizabeth's servants during the canonization process, that Elizabeth was driven from the Wartburg in the winter of 1227 by her brother-in-law, Heinrich Raspe, who acted as regent for her son, then only five years old. 1888 various investigators (Börner, Mielke, Wenck, E. Michael, etc.) asserted that Elizabeth left the Wartburg voluntarily. She was not able at the castle to follow Konrad's command to eat only food obtained in a way that was certainly right and proper.[6] her husband's death, Elizabeth made solemn vows to Konrad similar to those of a nun. These vows included celibacy, as well as complete obedience to Konrad as her confessor and spiritual director. treatment of Elizabeth was extremely harsh, and he held her to standards of behavior which were almost impossible to meet. the punishments he is alleged to have ordered were physical beatings; he also ordered her to send away her three children. pledge to celibacy proved a hindrance to her family's political ambitions. Elizabeth was more or less held hostage at Pottenstein, the castle of her uncle, Bishop Ekbert of Bamberg, in an effort to force her to remarry. however, held fast to her vow, even threatening to cut off her own nose so that no man would find her attractive enough to marry.[17] second child Sophie of Thuringia (1224–1275) married Henry II, Duke of Brabant, and was the ancestress of the Landgraves of Hesse, since in the War of the Thuringian Succession she won Hesse for her son Heinrich I, called the Child. third child, Gertrude of Altenberg (1227–1297), was born several weeks after the death of her father; she became abbess of the monastery of Altenberg Abbey, Hesse near Wetzlar.[18] built a hospital at Marburg for the poor and the sick with the money from her dowry, where she and her companions cared for them.[19] Miracles[edit] of the Roses[edit] A statue showing the miracle of the roses in the rose garden in front of the neo-Gothic church dedicated to her at Roses' Square (Rózsák tere), Budapest[20] is perhaps best known for her miracle of the roses which says that whilst she was taking bread to the poor in secret, she met her husband Ludwig on a hunting party, who, in order to quell suspicions of the gentry that she was stealing treasure from the castle, asked her to reveal what was hidden under her cloak. In that moment, her cloak fell open and a vision of white and red roses could be seen, which proved to Ludwig that God's protecting hand was at work.[21] husband, according to the vitae, was never troubled by her charity and always supported it. In some versions of this story, it is her brother in law, Heinrich Raspe, who questions her. Hers is one of many miracles that associate Christian saints with roses. in the bed[edit] story told of Elizabeth, also found in Dietrich of Apolda's Vita, relates how she laid the leper Helias of Eisenach in the bed she shared with her husband. Her mother-in-law, who was horrified, told this immediately to Ludwig on his return. When Ludwig removed the bedclothes in great indignation, at that instant "Almighty God opened the eyes of his soul, and instead of a leper he saw the figure of Christ crucified stretched upon the bed."[21] This story also appears in Franz Liszt's oratorio about Elizabeth.[22] and legacy[edit] Elisabethkirche in Marburg Floorplan of Elisabethkirche Elisabeth church in Grave, The Netherlands 1231, Elizabeth died in Marburg at the age of twenty-four.[23] after death and canonization[edit] soon after the death of Elizabeth, miracles were reported that happened at her grave in the church of the hospital, especially those of healing. On the suggestion of Konrad, and by papal command, examinations were held of those who had been healed between August 1232 and January 1235. The results of those examinations was supplemented by a brief vita of the saint-to-be, and together with the testimony of Elizabeth's handmaidens and companions (bound in a booklet called the Libellus de dictis quatuor ancillarum s. Elizabeth confectus), proved sufficient reason for quick canonization. She was canonized by Pope Gregory IX on 24 May 1235.[23] shrine became one of the main German centers of pilgrimage of the 14th century and early 15th century. During the course of the 15th century, the popularity of the cult of St Elizabeth slowly faded, though to some extent this was mitigated by an aristocratic devotion to St Elizabeth, since through her daughter Sophia she was an ancestor of many leading aristocratic German families. papal bull declaring her a saint is on display in the Schatzkammer of the Deutschordenskirche in Vienna, Austria. Her body was laid in a magnificent golden shrine—still to be seen today—in the Marburg church bearing her name. But three hundred years after her death, one of Elizabeth's many descendants, the Landgrave Philip I "the Magnanimous" of Hesse, a leader of the Protestant Reformation and one of the most important supporters of Martin Luther, raided the church in Marburg and demanded that the Teutonic Order hand over Elizabeth's bones, in order to disperse her relics and thus put an end to the already declining pilgrimages to Marburg.[6] Philip took away the crowned agate chalice in which her head rested, but returned it after being imprisoned by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. reliquary chalice was subsequently plundered by Swedish troops during the Thirty Years' War and is now on display at The Swedish History Museum in Stockholm.[24] Her skull and some of her bones can be seen at the Viennese convent bearing her name. A portion of her relics were kept in the church of the Carmelites at Brussels; another in the magnificent chapel of La Roche-Guyon, upon the Seine, and a considerable part in a precious shrine is in the electoral treasury of Hanover.[25] Another part of her relics were taken to Santafé de Bogotá, then the capital of the Spanish New Kingdom of Granada by friar Luis Zapata de Cárdenas. The relics are today inside a chapel dedicated to the saint in the Primatial Cathedral of Bogotá. Elisabethkirche is now a Protestant church, but has spaces set aside for Catholic worship. Marburg became a center of the Teutonic Order, which adopted St. Elizabeth as its secondary patroness. The Order remained in Marburg until its official dissolution by Napoleon in 1803. of Hungary is remembered in the Church of England with a Lesser Festival on 18 November.[26] with the Franciscans[edit] her death, Elizabeth was commonly associated with the Third Order of Saint Francis, the primarily lay branch of the Franciscan Order, which has helped propagate her cult. Whether she ever actually joined the order, only recently founded in 1221, the year when she married Louis at the age of fourteen, is not proven to everyone's satisfaction.[27] must be kept in mind though that the Third Order was such a new development in the Franciscan movement, that no one official ritual had been established at that point. Elizabeth clearly had a ceremony of consecration in which she adopted a Franciscan religious habit in her new way of life, as noted above. her support of the friars sent to Thuringia, she was made known to the founder, St Francis of Assisi, who sent her a personal message of blessing shortly before his death in 1226. Upon her canonization she was declared the patron saint of the Third Order of St Francis, an honor she shares with St Louis IX of France. Hungary, 1205-1235, King, Andrew II of Hungary ; ELIZABETH OF HUNGARY, PRINCESS AND PHILANTHROPIST (19 NOV 1231) ;

Belgium, 1242, Northern Crusades, ordered by Pope, Battle of the Ice, Pskov Lake
Russia, Novgorod, 1195-1242, Northern Crusades, ordered by Pope Celestine III; Rome, 1191-1198, Pope, Celestine III; Novgorod, 1242, Great Battle of the Ice of Pskov Lake, defeat of Teutonic Knights; Repose of St Alexander Nevsky, Commemorated on November 23;

Belgium, 1245-1274, Thomas Aquias, Dominican, philosopher, theologian, and jurist, scholasticism (w Aristotle Logic)
Belgium, 1245-1274, Holy Roman Saint, Thomas Aquias; Aquinas (1225 - 7 March 1274) was an Italian[10][11] Dominican friar, philosopher, Catholic priest, and Doctor of the Church. immensely influential philosopher, theologian, and jurist in the tradition of scholasticism, he is also known within the latter as the Doctor Angelicus, the Doctor Communis, and the Doctor Universalis.[a] The name Aquinas identifies his ancestral origins in the county of Aquino in present-day Lazio, Italy. Among other things, he was a prominent proponent of natural theology and the father of a school of thought (encompassing both theology and philosophy) known as Thomism. He argued that God is the source of both the light of natural reason and the light of faith.[12] His influence on Western thought is considerable, and much of modern philosophy developed or opposed his ideas, particularly in the areas of ethics, natural law, metaphysics, and political theory. many currents in the Catholic Church of the time,[13] Thomas embraced several ideas put forward by Aristotle—whom he called "the Philosopher"—and attempted to synthesize Aristotelian philosophy with the principles of Christianity.[14] best-known works are the Disputed Questions on Truth (1256–1259), the Summa contra Gentiles (1259–1265), and the unfinished but massively influential Summa Theologica, or Summa Theologiae (1265–1274). His commentaries on Scripture and on Aristotle also form an important part of his body of work. Furthermore, Thomas is distinguished for his eucharistic hymns, which form a part of the church's liturgy.[15] The Catholic Church honors Thomas Aquinas as a saint and regards him as the model teacher for those studying for the priesthood, and indeed the highest expression of both natural reason and speculative theology. In modern times, under papal directives, the study of his works was long used as a core of the required program of study for those seeking ordination as priests or deacons, as well as for those in religious formation and for other students of the sacred disciplines (philosophy, Catholic theology, church history, liturgy, and canon law).[16] Aquinas is considered one of the Catholic Church's greatest theologians and philosophers. Pope Benedict XV declared: "This (Dominican) Order ... acquired new luster when the Church declared the teaching of Thomas to be her own and that Doctor, honored with the special praises of the Pontiffs, the master and patron of Catholic schools."[17] The English philosopher Anthony Kenny considers Thomas to be "one of the dozen greatest philosophers of the western world".[18] LOUIS IX, KING OF FRANCE (25 AUGUST 1270); THOMAS AQUINAS, PRIEST, FRIAR, AND THEOLOGIAN (28 JAN 1274);

Belgium, 1248-1254, Seventh Crusade, Holy Roman Empire, Louis captured, ransomed, 1259 Karyes?
Belgium, 1248-1254, Seventh Crusade, Holy Roman Empire; The Seventh Crusade was a crusade led by Louis IX of France from 1248 to 1254. Louis' Christian army was defeated by the Ayyubid army led by Fakhr al-Din ibn Shaykh al-Shuyukh and their allies, the Bahriyya Mamluks, led by Faris ad-Din Aktai, Baibars al-Bunduqdari, Qutuz, Aybak and Qalawun. Shaykh al-Shuyukh was killed in the war, and Louis was captured. Approximately 800,000 bezants were paid in ransom for his return.[3][4][5]

Belgium, 1250-1273, Holy Roman Interregnum, No Emperor, several weak kings, anti kings, Avignon Papacy
Belgium, 1250-1273, Holy Roman Interregnum, No Emperor; There were many imperial interregna in the history of the Holy Roman Empire, when there was no emperor. Interregna in which there was no emperor-elect (king of the Romans) were rarer. Among the longest periods without an emperor were between 924 and 962 (38 years), between 1245 and 1312 (67 years), and between 1378 and 1433 (55 years). The crisis of government of the Holy Roman Empire and the German kingdom thus lasted throughout the late medieval period, and ended only with the rise of the House of Habsburg on the eve of the German Reformation and the Renaissance. The term Great Interregnum is occasionally used for the period between 1250 (death of Frederick II) and 1273 (accession of Rudolf I). Great Interregnum[edit] Or three leopards sable.svg Staufen party Arms of the Holy Roman Emperor (Hohenstaufen).svg Frederick II (1245-“50) Arms of the Holy Roman Emperor (Hohenstaufen).svg Conrad IV (1245-“54) Royal Coat of Arms of the Crown of Castile (1284-1390).svg Alfonso X of Castile (1257-“75) Arms of Rudolph I of Germany.svg Rudolf of Habsburg (1273-“75) Coat of arms of the House of Welf-Brunswick (Braunschweig).svg Welf party Thuringia armor.svg Henry of Thuringia (1246-“47) Wapen graafschap Holland.svg William II of Holland (1247-“56) Richard of Cornwall Arms.svg Richard of Cornwall (1257-“72) Blason Bo Bohame.svg Ottokar II of Bohemia Result: compromise Unanimous election of Rudolf in 1273 Alfonso X of Castile renounced claim in 1275 After the deposition of Frederick II by Pope Innocent IV in 1245, Henry Raspe, Landgrave of Thuringia was set up as anti-king to Frederick's son Conrad IV (d. 1254). Henry was killed in 1247 and succeeded as anti-king by William of Holland (died 1256). After 1257, the crown was contested between Richard of Cornwall, who was supported by the Guelph party, and Alfonso X of Castile, who was recognized by the Hohenstaufen party but never set foot on German soil. After Richard's death in 1273, Rudolf I of Germany, a minor pro-Staufen count, was elected. He was the first of the Habsburgs to hold a royal title, but he was never crowned emperor. After Rudolf's death in 1291, Adolf and Albert were two further weak kings who were never crowned emperor. Albert was assassinated in 1308. Almost immediately, King Philip IV of France began aggressively seeking support for his brother, Charles of Valois, to be elected the next King of the Romans.[1] Philip thought he had the backing of the French Pope Clement V (established at Avignon in 1309), and that his prospects of bringing the empire into the orbit of the French royal house were good. He lavishly spread French money in the hope of bribing the German electors.[2] Although Charles of Valois had the backing of Henry, Archbishop of Cologne, a French supporter, many were not keen to see an expansion of French power, least of all Clement V.[2][3] The principal rival to Charles appeared to be Rudolf, the Count Palatine. Instead, Henry VII, of the House of Luxembourg, was elected with six votes at Frankfurt on 27 November 1308.[2] Given his background, although he was a vassal of king Philip,[2] Henry was bound by few national ties, an aspect of his suitability as a compromise candidate among the electors,[4] the great territorial magnates who had lived without a crowned emperor for decades, and who were unhappy with both Charles and Rudolf. Henry of Cologne's brother, Baldwin, Archbishop of Trier, won over a number of the electors, including Henry, in exchange for some substantial concessions.[2] Henry VII was crowned king at Aachen on 6 January 1309, and emperor by Pope Clement V on 29 June 1312 in Rome, ending the interregnum. LOUIS IX, KING OF FRANCE (25 AUGUST 1270); 26 Martyrs of the Zographou Monastery on Mt. Athos at the hands of the Crusaders, Commemorated on October 10; THOMAS AQUINAS, PRIEST, FRIAR, AND THEOLOGIAN (28 JAN 1274); Martyrs killed by the Latins at the Iveron Monastery on Mt. Athos, Commemorated on May 13;

Belgium, 1259, Martyrs killed by Latins at Iviron monastery, pope's private army
Greece, Mt Athos, 1259, Martyrs killed by Latins at Iviron monastery; monks began to settle on Mt. Athos in the middle of the 10th century, and a Georgian monastery, Iveron, was founded there not long after. that time foreign armies were constantly invading Mt. Athos. In the 13th century the Crusaders stormed through the region, and between 1259 and 1306 the pope’s private army devastated Mt. Athos several times. Monks of Zographou and Vatopedi monasteries and the Protaton were martyred for the Orthodox Faith, and the monks of the Iveron Monastery eventually met the same fate. this period Georgian and Greek ascetics labored together at the Iveron Monastery, and many young ascetics of the new generation began to arrive from Georgia. Crusaders demanded that the Iveron monks convert to Catholicism and acknowledge the primacy of the Roman pope. But the monks condemned their fallacies and anathematized the doctrine of the Catholics. to the Patericon of Athos, the Ivá¸—ron monks were forcibly expelled from their monastery. Nearly two hundred elderly monks were goaded like animals onto a ship that was subsequently sunk in the depths of the sea. The younger, healthier monks were deported to Italy and sold as slaves to the Jews. sources claim this tragedy took place in the year 1259, while others record that the Georgian monks of the Holy Mountain were subject to the Latin persecutions over the course of four years, from 1276 to 1280. Iviron monastery ; Martyrs killed by the Latins at the Iveron Monastery on Mt. Athos, Commemorated on May 13; monks began to settle on Mt. Athos in the middle of the 10th century, and a Georgian monastery, Ivḗron, was founded there not long after. that time foreign armies were constantly invading Mt. Athos. In the 13th century the Crusaders stormed through the region, and between 1259 and 1306 the pope’s private army devastated Mt. Athos several times. Monks of Zographou and Vatopedi monasteries and the Protaton were martyred for the Orthodox Faith, and the monks of the Ivḗron Monastery eventually met the same fate. this period Georgian and Greek ascetics labored together at the Ivḗron Monastery, and many young ascetics of the new generation began to arrive from Georgia. Crusaders demanded that the Ivḗron monks convert to Catholicism and acknowledge the primacy of the Roman pope. But the monks condemned their fallacies and anathematized the doctrine of the Catholics. to the Patericon of Athos, the Ivḗron monks were forcibly expelled from their monastery. Nearly two hundred elderly monks were goaded like animals onto a ship that was subsequently sunk in the depths of the sea. The younger, healthier monks were deported to Italy and sold as slaves to the Jews. sources claim this tragedy took place in the year 1259, while others record that the Georgian monks of the Holy Mountain were subject to the Latin persecutions over the course of four years, from 1276 to 1280.

Belgium, 1261-1282, Euthymius&12 Monks, Vatopedi, Mt Athos, martyred for denouncing Latinizing Patriarchs Paleologos&Bekkos
Greece, 1261-1282, Euthymius&12 Monks, Vatopedi monastery, Mt Athos, martyred for denouncing Latinizing Patriarchs Paleologos&Bekkos; Vatopedi monastery ; Venerable Euthymius and twelve other Monks, martyred at Vatopedi, Commemorated on January 4; Monk Martyr Euthymius, Igumen of the Vatopedi Monastery on Mount Athos, and twelve other monks suffered martyrdom denouncing the Latinizing Patriarchs Michael Paleologos (1261-1281) and John Bekkos (1275-1282) as heretics. Saint Euthymius was drowned in the sea, and the monks were hanged.

Belgium, 1270, Eighth Crusade, Holy Roman Empire, Disease
Belgium, 1270, Eighth Crusade, Holy Roman Empire; The Eighth Crusade was a crusade launched by Louis IX of France against the Hafsid dynasty in 1270. The Eighth Crusade is sometimes counted as the Seventh, if the Fifth and Sixth Crusades of Frederick II are counted as a single crusade. The Ninth Crusade is sometimes also counted as part of the Eighth. The crusade is considered a failure after Louis died shortly after arriving on the shores of Tunisia, with his disease-ridden army dispersing back to Europe shortly afterwards.[1]

Belgium, 1271-1272, Nineth Crusade, Holy Roman Empire, Lord Edward's C, clash with Baibars, Outremer territories
Belgium, 1271-1272, Nineth Crusade, Holy Roman Empire ; Edward's crusade,[1] sometimes called the Ninth Crusade,[2] was a military expedition to the Holy Land under the command of the future King Edward I of England in 1271-“1272. It was an extension of the Eighth Crusade and was the last of the Crusades to reach the Holy Land before the fall of Acre in 1291 brought an end to the permanent crusader presence there. Ninth Crusade saw Edward clash with Baibars, with both achieving limited victories. The Crusaders were ultimately forced to withdraw, since Edward had pressing concerns at home and felt unable to resolve the internal conflicts within the remnant Outremer territories. It is arguable that the Crusading spirit was nearly "extinct" by this period as well.[3] It also foreshadowed the imminent collapse of the last remaining crusader strongholds along the Mediterranean coast. Monastic Martyrs of Karyes, Commemorated on December 5 ;

Belgium, 1272, Union of Lyons, convoked 1272, convened 1274, Peace among Christians, revoked
France, 1272, Union of Lyons 1272; The Second Council of Lyon was the fourteenth ecumenical council of the Catholic Church, convoked on 31 March 1272 and convened in Lyon, Kingdom of Arles (in modern France), in 1274.[1] Pope Gregory X presided over the council, called to act on a pledge by Byzantine emperor Michael VIII to reunite the Eastern church with the West.[2] The council was attended by about 300 bishops, 60 abbots[3] and more than a thousand prelates or their procurators, among whom were the representatives of the universities. Due to the great number of attendees, those who had come to Lyon without being specifically summoned were given "leave to depart with the blessing of God" and of the Pope. Among others who attended the council were James I of Aragon, the ambassador of the Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos with members of the Greek clergy and the ambassadors of Abaqa Khan of the Ilkhanate. Thomas Aquinas had been summoned to the council, but died en route at Fossanova Abbey. Bonaventure was present at the first four sessions, but died at Lyon on 15 July 1274. As at the First Council of Lyon, Thomas Cantilupe was an English attendee and a papal chaplain.[4] In addition to Aragon, which James represented in person, representatives of the kings of Germany, England, Scotland, France, the Spains and Sicily[5] were present, with procurators also representing the kingdoms of Norway, Sweden, Hungary, Bohemia, the "realm of Dacia" and the duchy of Poland. In the procedures to be observed in the council, for the first time the nations appeared as represented elements in an ecclesiastical council, as they had already become represented in the governing of medieval universities. This innovation marks a stepping-stone towards the acknowledgment of coherent ideas of nationhood, which were in the process of creating the European nation-states. The main topics discussed at the council were the conquest of the Holy Land and the union of the Eastern and Western Churches. The first session took place on 7 May 1274 and was followed by five additional sessions on 18 May 1274, 4 or 7 June 1274, 6 July 1274, 16 July 1274, and 17 July 1274. By the end of the council, 31 constitutions were promulgated. In the second session, the fathers approved the decree Zelus fidei, which contained no juridical statutes but rather summed up constitutions about the perils of the Holy Land, the means for paying for a proposed crusade, the excommunication of pirates and corsairs and those who protected them or traded with them, a declaration of peace among Christians, a grant of an indulgence for those willing to go on crusade, restoration of communion with the Greeks, and the definition of the order and procedure to be observed in the council. The Greeks conceded on the issue of the Filioque (two words added to the Nicene Creed), and union was proclaimed, but the union was later repudiated by Andronicus II,[2] heir to Michael VIII. The council also recognized Rudolf I as Holy Roman Emperor, ending the interregnum.[2] 26 Martyrs of the Zographou Monastery on Mt. Athos at the hands of the Crusaders, Commemorated on October 10;

Belgium, 1273-1291, Holy Roman Emperor, Rudolf I of Germany, first Hapsburg for Germany, Austria
Belgium, 1273-1291, Holy Roman Emperor, Rudolf I of Germany; I (1 May 1218 - 15 July 1291) was the first king of Germany from the House of Habsburg. The first of the count-kings of Germany, he reigned from 1273 until his death. election marked the end of the Great Interregnum which had begun after the death of the Hohenstaufen Emperor Frederick II in 1250. a Swabian count, he was the first Habsburg to acquire the duchies of Austria and Styria in opposition to his mighty rival, the Premyslid king Ottokar II of Bohemia, whom he defeated in the 1278 Battle on the Marchfeld. territories remained under Habsburg rule for more than 600 years, forming the core of the Habsburg Monarchy and the present-day country of Austria. played a vital role in raising the comital House of Habsburg to the rank of Imperial princes. 26 Martyrs of the Zographou Monastery on Mt. Athos at the hands of the Crusaders, Commemorated on October 10; Monastic Martyrs of Karyes, Commemorated on December 5 ; THOMAS AQUINAS, PRIEST, FRIAR, AND THEOLOGIAN (28 JAN 1274); Martyrs killed by the Latins at the Iveron Monastery on Mt. Athos, Commemorated on May 13;

Belgium, 1274, Union of Lyons convoked in 1272, convened 1274, peace among Christians, revoked
France, 1272, Union of Lyons 1272; The Second Council of Lyon was the fourteenth ecumenical council of the Catholic Church, convoked on 31 March 1272 and convened in Lyon, Kingdom of Arles (in modern France), in 1274.[1] Pope Gregory X presided over the council, called to act on a pledge by Byzantine emperor Michael VIII to reunite the Eastern church with the West.[2] The council was attended by about 300 bishops, 60 abbots[3] and more than a thousand prelates or their procurators, among whom were the representatives of the universities. Due to the great number of attendees, those who had come to Lyon without being specifically summoned were given "leave to depart with the blessing of God" and of the Pope. Among others who attended the council were James I of Aragon, the ambassador of the Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos with members of the Greek clergy and the ambassadors of Abaqa Khan of the Ilkhanate. Thomas Aquinas had been summoned to the council, but died en route at Fossanova Abbey. Bonaventure was present at the first four sessions, but died at Lyon on 15 July 1274. As at the First Council of Lyon, Thomas Cantilupe was an English attendee and a papal chaplain.[4] In addition to Aragon, which James represented in person, representatives of the kings of Germany, England, Scotland, France, the Spains and Sicily[5] were present, with procurators also representing the kingdoms of Norway, Sweden, Hungary, Bohemia, the "realm of Dacia" and the duchy of Poland. In the procedures to be observed in the council, for the first time the nations appeared as represented elements in an ecclesiastical council, as they had already become represented in the governing of medieval universities. This innovation marks a stepping-stone towards the acknowledgment of coherent ideas of nationhood, which were in the process of creating the European nation-states. The main topics discussed at the council were the conquest of the Holy Land and the union of the Eastern and Western Churches. The first session took place on 7 May 1274 and was followed by five additional sessions on 18 May 1274, 4 or 7 June 1274, 6 July 1274, 16 July 1274, and 17 July 1274. By the end of the council, 31 constitutions were promulgated. In the second session, the fathers approved the decree Zelus fidei, which contained no juridical statutes but rather summed up constitutions about the perils of the Holy Land, the means for paying for a proposed crusade, the excommunication of pirates and corsairs and those who protected them or traded with them, a declaration of peace among Christians, a grant of an indulgence for those willing to go on crusade, restoration of communion with the Greeks, and the definition of the order and procedure to be observed in the council. The Greeks conceded on the issue of the Filioque (two words added to the Nicene Creed), and union was proclaimed, but the union was later repudiated by Andronicus II,[2] heir to Michael VIII. The council also recognized Rudolf I as Holy Roman Emperor, ending the interregnum.[2] 26 Monk-Martyrs of Zographou of Mt Athos, Commemorated on September 21;

Belgium, 1274, 26 Monk-Martyrs of Zographou, burned alive by heretic Michael VIII, for no union with Rome
Greece, Mt Athos, 1274, 26 Monk-Martyrs of Zographou Monestary, Bulgarian, Mt Athos, burned alive by heretic Michael VIII, for not accepting union with Roman Church; Zographou Monastery; 26 Monk-Martyrs of Zographou of Mt Athos, Commemorated on September 21 ; July of 1274, the Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII accepted a union with the Roman Church at Lyons, France. with dangers from Charles of Anjou, the Ottoman Turks, and other enemies, the emperor found such an alliance with Rome expedient. Union of Lyons required the Orthodox to recognize the authority of the Pope, the use of the Filioque in the Creed, and the use of azymes (unleavened bread) in the Liturgy. Joseph was deposed because he would not agree to these conditions. The monastic clergy and many of the laity, both at home and in other Orthodox countries, vigorously opposed the Union, denouncing the emperor for his political schemes and for his betrayal of Orthodoxy. January 9, 1275 a Liturgy was celebrated in Constantinople in which the Pope was commemorated as “Gregory, the chief pontiff of the Apostolic Church, and Ecumenical Pope. ” The emperor’s sister remarked, “It is better that my brother’s empire should perish, rather than the purity of the Orthodox Faith.” the infamous Crusade of 1204 when Latin crusaders sacked Constantinople, many of the people also preferred to submit to the infidels than to abandon the Orthodox Faith. martyrs of Zographou Monastery on Mt. Athos were among those who were persecuted by Emperor Michael VIII Paleologos (1261-1282) and Patriarch John Bekkos (1275-1282) because they would not obey the imperial command to recognize the Union of Lyons. steadfastly kept the teachings of the Fathers of the Church, and fearlessly censured those who accepted Catholic doctrines. the authorities came to Mt. Athos to enforce the imperial policy, the monks of Zographou shut themselves up in their monastery. the tower they reproached those in favor of the Union, calling them lawless men and heretics. The attackers set the monastery on fire and burned the twenty-six martyrs alive. names of the martyrs are: Igumen Thomas, the monks Barsanuphius, Cyril, Micah, Simon, Hilarion, James, Job, Cyprian, Savva, James, Martinian, Cosmas, Sergius, Menas, Joasaph, Joannicius, Paul, Anthony, Euthymius, Dometian, Parthenius, and four laymen who died with them. holy martyrs are also commemorated on October 10.

Belgium, 1282, Martyrs oKaryes, apostate Emperor Paleologos, Latins burned Karyes because they denounced rationalising
Greece, Mt Athos, 1282, Martyrs of Karyes, Athos, m bLatins, fire and sword, apostate Paleologos, burned Protaton basilica, apostate Emperor Michael Paleologos 1259-1282, because Protos had denounced rationalising aHeresy; Greece, Mt Athos, 1282, Martyrs of Karyes, Athos, m by t Latins, fire and sword, during apostate Mike Paleologos, burned Protaton basilica, Protos hanged, others by swords; Serbian Bishop Saint Sava built a church and cell at Karyes, where he stayed for some years, becoming a Hieromonk, then an Archimandrite in 1201. He wrote the Karyes Typicon during his stay there, and a marble inscription of his work still exists.[2] In 1219 Sava becomes the first Archbishop of Serbia.[2] the year 1283, Latin Crusaders during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Michael Paleologos, attacked Mount Athos. They tortured and hanged the Protos, and sacked the Protaton, murdering many of the monks. These monks are commemorated as martyrs by the Orthodox Church on December 5 (for those churches which follow the traditional Julian Calendar, December 5 falls on December 18 of the Gregorian Calendar). Kayes; Venerable Philotheus of Karyes of Mt Athos, Commemorated December 5 ; Philotheus of Karyes lived an ascetic life on Athos in the cell of Iagari near Karyes. was the Spiritual Father of Saint Nectarius. Because of the purity of his life, he was granted the gift of clairvoyance. Monastic Martyrs of Karyes, Commemorated on December 5 ; Holy Monastic Martyrs of Karyes were martyred by the Latins who came with fire and sword onto Mount Athos during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Michael Paleologos (1259-1282), an apostate from Orthodoxy. in upon the Karyes monastery, the Latins burned and devastated the Church of the Protaton [the only basilica on the Holy Mountain, built in 965], “leaving no one alive.” -------------------------------------------------The Protos of the Holy Mountain, who had denounced the Latin rationalising as heresy, was after much torture hanged before the Protaton at the place called Chalkhos. hidden in caves around Karyes were cut down with swords. See October 10.

Belgium, 1284, Zographou Monestary, Mt Athos, Crusaders, 26 Martyrs
Zographou Monastery; 26 Monk-Martyrs of Zographou of Mt Athos, Commemorated on September 21 ; Venerable Cosmas the Bulgarian of Zographou of Mt Athos, Commemorated on September 21; Venerable Cosmas of the Zographou Monastery on Mt. Athos, Commemorated on September 22 ; Icon of the Mother of God "of the Akathist" of the Zographou Monastery, Commemorated October 10 ; 26 Martyrs of the Zographou Monastery on Mt. Athos at the hands of the Crusaders, Commemorated October 10 ; Venerable Pimen the Bulgarian of the Zographou Monastery on Mt. Athos, Commemorated November 3 ; St Hilarion the Georgian, the New, Commemorated February 14 ; Venerable Damian of Esphigmenou of Mt Athos, Commemorated February 23 ; Icon of the Mother of God œof the AkathistÂ, Commemorated on March 27; Martyrs killed by the Latins at the Iveron Monastery on Mt. Athos, Commemorated on May 13;

Belgium, 1284, Zographou Akathist Icon and MOG Prepared 26 for Martyrdom
Greece, Macedonia, Mt Athos, 1284, Zographou Akathist Icon and MOG Prepared 26 for Martyrdom day, while reading the Akathist, and silently repeating the word "rejoice," the Elder suddenly heard a voice coming from the Icon, "Rejoice also, Elder of God!" ascetic trembled in horror, but the voice continued: "Do not be afraid, but go to the monastery as soon as possible and announce to the brethren and to the Igoumen that the monastery is in danger from enemies who are already close by. Whoever is weak in patience, let him hide until the temptation passes; but as for those who are seeking crowns, let them stay." Zographou Monastery; Icon of the Mother of God of the Akathist of Zographou Monastery, Commemorated on October 10; the XIII century, there was a certain Elder who spent his life in ascetical struggles on Mount Athos. He had the pious custom of reading the Akathist Hymn before the Icon of the Mother of God every day. day, while reading the Akathist, and silently repeating the word "rejoice," the Elder suddenly heard a voice coming from the Icon, "Rejoice also, Elder of God!" ascetic trembled in horror, but the voice continued: "Do not be afraid, but go to the monastery as soon as possible and announce to the brethren and to the Igoumen that the monastery is in danger from enemies who are already close by. Whoever is weak in patience, let him hide until the temptation passes; but as for those who are seeking crowns, let them stay." Elder left the cell right away and hurried to the monastery. As soon as he entered the gate, his eyes beheld the very Icon from his cell, before which he had just read the Akathist. An invisible, miraculous power had brought it there from the ascetic's cell. Elder fell down before the Icon with ardent prayer, and then with the Icon in his hands, he went to the Igoumen. The brotherhood, learning of the impending danger, was very worried. The more faint-hearted monks hastened to hide in the mountains, while twenty-six brave monks, including the Igoumen himself, remained in the monastery. The Elder, who received the heavenly revelation, also remained with them, so that he might comfort them during the coming trial. did not take long for their enemies to reach the monastery. These were Latins who at that time were trying to convert Orthodox Christians to Catholicism. Arriving at the monastery and approaching the tower in which the monks had locked themselves, they tried to persuade them to renounce Orthodoxy. In an effort to convince them to recognize the pope as the head of the Universal Church, the Latins promised the champions of Orthodoxy all sorts of favors and monetary rewards. But these faithful sons of the Orthodox Church remained adamant. the enemies of Orthodoxy piled wood around the tower and lit it. As they prayed to the Lord, the monks gave thanks to the Almighty for making them worthy of receiving the crown of martyrdom, and then all of them surrendered their spotless souls to the Heavenly Father. Their martyric death occurred on October 10, 1274. The names of the victims were added to the Synodikon of Zographou Monastery, as well as to the official calendar of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. wonderworking Icon of the Mother of God, who warned the Elder about the impending disaster, was subsequently found unscathed under the ashes in the ruins of the monastery. Today this Icon is in the monastery, and an unsleeping lampada burns before it. is another Icon with the same name "of the Akathist" at Hilandar Monastery on Mount Athos. Information about that Icon may be found under January 12. 26 Monk-Martyrs of Zographou of Mt Athos, Commemorated on September 21 ; July of 1274, the Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII accepted a union with the Roman Church at Lyons, France. with dangers from Charles of Anjou, the Ottoman Turks, and other enemies, the emperor found such an alliance with Rome expedient. Union of Lyons required the Orthodox to recognize the authority of the Pope, the use of the Filioque in the Creed, and the use of azymes (unleavened bread) in the Liturgy. Joseph was deposed because he would not agree to these conditions. The monastic clergy and many of the laity, both at home and in other Orthodox countries, vigorously opposed the Union, denouncing the emperor for his political schemes and for his betrayal of Orthodoxy. January 9, 1275 a Liturgy was celebrated in Constantinople in which the Pope was commemorated as “Gregory, the chief pontiff of the Apostolic Church, and Ecumenical Pope.” emperor’s sister remarked, “It is better that my brother’s empire should perish, rather than the purity of the Orthodox Faith.” the infamous Crusade of 1204 when Latin crusaders sacked Constantinople, many of the people also preferred to submit to the infidels than to abandon the Orthodox Faith. martyrs of Zographou Monastery on Mt. Athos were among those who were persecuted by Emperor Michael VIII Paleologos (1261-1282) and Patriarch John Bekkos (1275-1282) because they would not obey the imperial command to recognize the Union of Lyons. They steadfastly kept the teachings of the Fathers of the Church, and fearlessly censured those who accepted Catholic doctrines. the authorities came to Mt. Athos to enforce the imperial policy, the monks of Zographou shut themselves up in their monastery. From the tower they reproached those in favor of the Union, calling them lawless men and heretics. The attackers set the monastery on fire and burned the twenty-six martyrs alive. names of the martyrs are: Igumen Thomas, the monks Barsanuphius, Cyril, Micah, Simon, Hilarion, James, Job, Cyprian, Savva, James, Martinian, Cosmas, Sergius, Menas, Joasaph, Joannicius, Paul, Anthony, Euthymius, Dometian, Parthenius, and four laymen who died with them. holy martyrs are also commemorated on October 10. Icon of the Mother of God œof the AkathistÂ, Commemorated on March 27; Martyrs killed by the Latins at the Iveron Monastery on Mt. Athos, Commemorated on May 13;

Belgium, 1291-1298, Holy Roman Emperor, Adolf of Germany, deposed by Albert I
Belgium, 1291-1298, Holy Roman Emperor, Adolf of Germany; (c. 1255 – 2 July 1298) was Count of Nassau from about 1276 and elected King of the Romans (King of Germany) from 1292 until his deposition by the prince-electors in 1298. was never crowned by the Pope, which would have secured him the title of Holy Roman Emperor. He was the first physically and mentally healthy ruler of the Holy Roman Empire ever to be deposed without a papal excommunication. died shortly afterwards in the Battle of Göllheim fighting against his successor Albert of Habsburg. was the second in the succession of so-called count-kings of several rivalling comital houses striving after the Roman-German royal dignity. last agnatic dynastic descendant was William IV of Luxembourg. ---------------------------------------------------------- Venerable Joasaph of Snetogorsk, Pskov, Commemorated on March 4;

Belgium, 1298-1308, Holy Roman Emperor, Albert I of Germany, assinated
Belgium, 1298-1308, Holy Roman Emperor, Albert I of Germany; I of Habsburg (German: Albrecht I.) (July 1255 - 1 May 1308), the eldest son of King Rudolf I of Germany[1] and his first wife Gertrude of Hohenberg, was a Duke of Austria and Styria from 1282 and King of Germany from 1298 until his assassination. JAN HUS, PRIEST and MARTYR, 6 July 1415; Venerable Joasaph of Snetogorsk, Pskov, Commemorated on March 4;

Belgium, 1300-1399, 14th Century Folder, Holy Roman Empire, Avignon Papacy

Belgium, 1305-1316, Sava III, Archbishop oSerbia, important Serbian architecture development figure
Saint Sava III (Serbian: Свети Сава III / Sveti Sava III; died July 16, 1316) was the Archbishop of Serbs from 1309 to 1316. Upon completing his studies,[1] he began as a hegumen in Hilandar, then became the Bishop of Prizren. During his office as bishop, he worked on the Bogorodica Ljeviška church in Prizren. In 1309 he became the Archbishop. Sava III was an important figure of the development of architecture in Medieval Serbia. Prior to the founding of the Banjska monastery, which Sava III did not survive, King Stefan Milutin consulted with him. In his charters confirming the endowments of King Milutin, he is styled "Archbishop of All Serbian and Maritime Lands". He rebuilt the Church of Saint George in Staro Nagoričane. According to the testimonies of his successor Archbishop Nikodim I, he regularly donated to Hilandar. The Serbian Orthodox Church venerate him as Saint Sava III on July 26 (August 8, Gregorian calendar); Serbia; Saint Savva III of Serbia, Commemorated on July 26; Savva III was Archbishop of Serbia from 1305 -1316. He is also commemorated on August 30 (and August 16).

Belgium, 1308-1313, Holy Roman Emperor, Henry VII of Luxembourg
Belgium, 1308-1313, Holy Roman Emperor, Henry VII of Luxembourg ; JAN HUS, PRIEST and MARTYR, 6 July 1415;

Belgium, 1309-1377, Avignon Papacy
France, 1309-1377, Avignon Papacy; Avignon; CATHERINE OF SIENA, REFORMER AND SPIRITUAL TEACHER (29 APR 1380); EARLY ABBOTS of CLUNY, 30 April 909 ; JAN HUS, PRIEST and MARTYR, 6 July 1415;

Belgium, 1337-1453, 100 Years War between France and England for France
Battle of Agincourt; Hundred Years War (1337-1453); THOMAS A KEMPIS, PRIEST, MONK, AND WRITER (24 JULY 1471) ; GEORGE, SOLDIER and MARTYR, 23 APRIL 303, Commemorated April 23; JOAN OF ARC, VISIONARY, 30 May 1431;

Belgium, 1351-1430, Joanikije of Devic in Kosovo, wonderworker, solitude silence fasting unceasing prayer
Serbia, 1351-1430, Joanikije of Devic in Kosovo, f Zeta, tChrna Reka (Black River), nIbar River, solitude silence fasting unceasing prayer, people gathered, fled to Drnica & forest of Devic, healed prince's daughter, money for Monastery, miracles after death; Venerable Joannicius of Devic, Commemorated on December 2; Ioannikios (Janićije) was a Serb from Zeta, near the Adriatic Sea. was the son of pious and God-fearing parents, and he lived during the reign of the last medieval Serbian ruler, Prince George Branković (1427-1458). his youth, Saint Ioannikios loved solitude, as an adolescent he left his parents and made his way to eastern Serbia, where he settled in a wooded area called Chrna Reka (Black River), a few miles from the Ibar River. found a narrow cave where, according to Tradition, Saint Peter of Koriša (June 5) had struggled during the XIII century. Ioannikios built a cell and lived there for many years in solitude, fasting, and unceasing prayer. time, people began coming to him from all over Serbia in order to hear his words, and to receive his blessing. Others were drawn to him because they wanted him to guide them in the monastic life. community grew around him, and they built a church near his cell. when people heard about the holiness of his life, he fled to Drnica and hid himself in the thick forest of Devič. again, the Saint lived in solitude, weeping, fasting, struggling with demons, and devoting himself to the unceasing Prayer of the Heart. day Prince George brought his terminally ill daughter to him, and the Saint healed her. Prince wanted to know what he could do to express his gratitude. Ioannikios asked him to built a monastery at Devič and dedicate it to the Entrance of the a Most Holy Theotokos into the Temple (November 21). a holy and God-pleasing life, Saint Ioannikios reposed on December 2, 1430, when he was almost one hundred years old. His grace-filled and wonderworking relics are kept at the monastery. After his death, many miracles have taken place there, and those who entreat him with faith are healed of their sicknesses and afflictions. this monastery there once lived a renowned and godly nun, Sister Euphemia, who is better known in the Kossovo region as Blessed Stoina. She built an Ispostnica (House of Silence) in honor of St. Ioannikios. She fell asleep in the Lord in the year 1895. Ioannikios still performs miracles, just as he did in his lifetime, five hundred years ago. A certain man from Hercegovina, whose name was Miloš wanted to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem to venerate the holy places. Just as he was about to embark on his journey, Saint Ioannikios appeared to him in a dream and told him not to go to Jerusalem. "It would be better," the Saint explained, "if you went to Devič and cleaned my church, and put it in order, instead of going to Jerusalem." š followed the Saint's advice and went to the neglected Devič monastery, cleaned it up, restored it, and gave it new life. He became a monk and remained there until the end of his life. the First World War and the Austrian occupation, a Hungarian officer arrived at Devič with some soldiers. He made Igoumen Damaskene take him to the tomb of Saint Ioannikios, and asked him what was under the slab. "It is a holy place," the Igoumen replied. sort of holy place?" the officer asked. "You have some valuables hidden under there, don't you?" officer ordered the soldiers to break the slab with pick axes. As they were completing their task, the officer was stricken with pain in the middle of his body. He lay down on a bed and died before that evening. The terrified soldiers abandoned their work and fled from the monastery. Ioannikios is also commemorated on April 26, the uncovering of his holy relics. Devic Monastery in Kosovo; Devič Monastery (Serbian: Манастир Девич, romanized: Manastir Devič; Albanian: Manastiri i Deviçit) is a Serbian Orthodox abbey in Kosovo[a]. It was built in 1434 and is dedicated to St Joanikije of Devič. Devič was declared Monument of Culture of Exceptional Importance in 1990, and it is protected by the Republic of Serbia.

Belgium, 1355-1378, Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV of Luxembourg
Belgium, 1355-1378, Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV of Luxembourg; CATHERINE OF SIENA, REFORMER AND SPIRITUAL TEACHER (29 APR 1380); JAN HUS, PRIEST and MARTYR, 6 July 1415;

Belgium, 1367-1380, CATHERINE OF SIENA, REFORMER AND SPIRITUAL TEACHER, vision of Christ at 6, leprosy cancer nurse, Avigon Papacy
Rome, 1367-1380, SCATHERINE OF SIENA, (a Tuscan hill town, irrigation), REFORMER AND SPIRITUAL TEACHER, vision of Christ at 6, leprosy cancer nurse, Avigon Papacy, persuaded Gregory XI back to R, ambassador to Florence, retired to Sienna, Dialog book visions advice, arrogant Urban VI, new Clement VII at Avigon, papal Schism till 1417; Siena; CATHERINE OF SIENA, REFORMER AND SPIRITUAL TEACHER (29 APR 1380); Benincasa, born in 1347, was the youngest (one of my sources says the 23rd) of twenty-five children of a wealthy dyer of Sienna (or Siena). the age of six, she had a vision of Christ in glory, surrounded by His saints. that time on, she spent most of her time in prayer and meditation, over the opposition of her parents, who wanted her to be more like the average girl of her social class. they gave in, and at the age of sixteen she joined the Third Order of St. Dominic (First Order = friars, Second Order = nuns, Third Order = laypersons), where she became a nurse, caring for patients with leprosy and advanced cancer whom other nurses disliked to treat. began to acquire a reputation as a person of insight and sound judgement, and many persons from all walks of life sought her spiritual advice, both in person and by letter. have a book containing about four hundred letters from her to bishops, kings, scholars, merchants, and obscure peasants.) persuaded many priests who were living iacn luxury to give away their goods and to live simply. her day, the popes, officially Bishops of Rome, had been living for about seventy years, not at Rome but at Avignon in France, where they were under the political control of the King of France Avignon Papacy, sometimes called the Babylonian Captivity of the Papacy, began when Philip the Fair, King of France, captured Rome and the Pope in 1303). visited Avignon in 1376 and told Pope Gregory XI that he had no business to live away from Rome. He heeded her advice, and moved to Rome. then acted as his ambassador to Florence, and was able to reconcile a quarrel between the Pope and the leaders of that city. She then retired to Sienna, where she wrote a book called the Dialog, an account of her visions and other spiritual experiences, with advice on cultivating a life of prayer. Gregory's death in 1378, the Cardinals, mostly French, elected an Italian Pope, Urban VI, who on attaining office turned out to be arrogant and abrasive and tyrannical, and perhaps to have other faults as well. Cardinals met again elsewhere, declared that the first election had been under duress from the Roman mob and therefore invalid, and elected a new Pope, Clement VII, who established his residence at Avignon. worked tirelessly, both to persuade Urban to mend his ways letters to him are respectful but severe and uncompromising -- as one historian has said, she perfected the art of kissing the Pope's feet while simultaneously twisting his arm), to persuade others that the peace and unity of the Church required the recognition of Urban as lawful Pope. Despite her efforts, the Papal Schism continued until 1417. greatly weakened the prestige of the Bishops of Rome, and thus helped to pave the way for the Protestant Reformation a century later. is known (1) as a mystic, a contemplative who devoted herself to prayer, (2) as a humanitarian, a nurse who undertook to alleviate the suffering of the poor and the sick; (3) as an activist, a renewer of Church and society, who took a strong stand on the issues affecting society in her day, and who never hesitated (in the old Quaker phrase) "to speak truth to power"; (4) as an adviser and counselor, with a wide range of interests, who always made time for troubled and uncertain persons who told her their problems -- large and trivial, religious and secular. by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1369-1397, Callistus of Xanthopoulos, historian, Hesychasts d, divine light, faces shine like sun
Greece, Mt Athos, 1369-1397, Callistus of Xanthopoulos m & Magul skete, Mt Athos, near Philotheou, 28 yrs, Gregory of Sinai's story, directions to Hesychasts, divine light, faces shine like sun, died in Serbia; Magul skete on Holy Mount Athos (opposite the monastery of Philotheou) Venerable Callistus Xanthopoulos of Mt Athos, Commemorated November 22 ; Callistus II pursued asceticism at the Magul skete on Holy Mount Athos (opposite the monastery of Philotheou), there for twenty-eight years. was the disciple of Saint Gregory of Sinai (August 8), whose Life he wrote. with his fellow ascetic Ignatius of Xanthopoulos, he compiled the “Directions to Hesychasts in One Hundred Chapters” found in the second part of the Slavonic edition of the Philokalia (English translation in Kadlubovsky and Palmer, Writings from the Philokalia on Prayer of the Heart). their contemporary, Saint Simeon of Thessalonica (September 15) asserts, Saints Callistus and Ignatius of Xanthopoulos beheld the Uncreated Light, as the apostles had done on Mount Tabor. Their faces seemed to “shine like the sun.” 1397 he was elevated to the patriarchal throne, and was hierarch during the days of Manuel Paleologos (1391-1425). agreed to journey to Serbia in order to bring peace to that church, stopping along the way at Mt Athos. There, the Patriarch was told that he would not see his flock again. Upon reaching Serbia, he exchanged this temporal life for life eternal.

Belgium, 1378-1437, Sigismund of Bavaria, Bohemia, Brandenburg (Berlin), Lux, Croats, Serbs, Italy, & Hungry, Crusade, Hussites
Belgium, 1378-1437, Holy Roman Emperor, Sigismund of Luxembourg ; of Bohemia (15 February 1368 - 9 December 1437), also known as Sigismund of Luxembourg, was prince-elector of Brandenburg from 1378 until 1388 and from 1411 until 1415, king of Hungary and Croatia from 1387, king of Germany from 1411, king of Bohemia from 1419, king of Italy from 1431, and Holy Roman Emperor from 1433 until 1437, and the last male member of the House of Luxembourg.[1] was born in Nuremberg, the son of Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV and Elizabeth of Pomerania. He married Queen Mary of Hungary in 1385 and was crowned King of Hungary soon after. He fought to restore and maintain authority to the throne. Mary died in 1395, leaving Sigismund the sole ruler of Hungary. 1396, Sigismund led the Crusade of Nicopolis, but was decisively defeated by the Ottoman Empire. Afterwards, he founded the Order of the Dragon to fight the Turks and secured the thrones of Croatia, Germany and Bohemia. Sigismund was one of the driving forces behind the Council of Constance (1414-1418) that ended the Papal Schism, but which also led to the Hussite Wars that dominated the later period of his life. In 1433, Sigismund was crowned Holy Roman Emperor and ruled until his death in 1437. life in Nuremberg, Sigismund was the son of the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV, and of his fourth wife, Elizabeth of Pomerania, who was the granddaughter of King Casimir III of Poland and the great-granddaughter of the Grand Duke of Lithuania, Gediminas. He was named after Saint Sigismund of Burgundy, the favourite saint of Sigismund's father. From Sigismund's childhood he was nicknamed the "ginger fox" in the Crown of Bohemia, on account of his hair colour. first wife, Mary I, Queen of Hungary. Louis the Great of Hungary and Poland always had a good and close relationship with Emperor Charles IV, and Sigismund was betrothed to Louis' eldest daughter, Mary, in 1374, when he was six years old. his father's death in 1378, young Sigismund became Margrave of Brandenburg and was sent to the Hungarian court, where he soon learnt the Hungarian language and way of life, and became entirely devoted to his adopted country.[2] King Louis named him as his heir and appointed him his successor as King of Hungary. 1381, the then 13-year-old Sigismund was sent to Krakow by his eldest half-brother and guardian Wenceslaus, King of Germany and Bohemia, to learn Polish and to become acquainted with the land and its people. King Wenceslaus also gave him Neumark to facilitate communication between Brandenburg and Poland. disagreement between Polish landlords of Lesser Poland on one side and landlords of Greater Poland on the other, regarding the choice of the future King of Poland, finally ended in choosing the Lithuanian side. The support of the lords of Greater Poland was however not enough to give Prince Sigismund the Polish crown. Instead, the landlords of Lesser Poland gave it to Mary's younger sister Jadwiga I of Poland, who married Jogaila of Lithuania. of Hungary coin of Sigismund of Hungary with his coat of arms (right), the image of the King Saint Ladislaus I of Hungary (left). Standard of Hungary under the rule of Sigismund (1387–1437). the death of her father in 1382, his betrothed, Mary, became queen of Hungary and Sigismund married her in 1385 in Zolyom (today Zvolen). The next year, he was accepted as Mary's future co-ruler by the Treaty of Gyor. However, Mary was captured, together with her mother, Elizabeth of Bosnia, who had acted as regent, in 1387 by the rebellious House of Horvat, Bishop Paul Horvat of Macva, his brother John Horvat and younger brother Ladislav. Sigismund's mother-in-law was strangled, while Mary was liberated. secured the support of the nobility, Sigismund was crowned King of Hungary at Szekesfehervar on 31 March 1387.[3] Having raised money by pledging Brandenburg to his cousin Jobst, margrave of Moravia (1388), he was engaged for the next nine years in a ceaseless struggle for the possession of this unstable throne.[2] The central power was finally weakened to such an extent that only Sigismund's alliance with the powerful Czillei-Garai League could ensure his position on the throne.[4] It was not for entirely selfless reasons that one of the leagues of barons helped him to power: Sigismund had to pay for the support of the lords by transferring a sizeable part of the royal properties. (For some years, the baron's council governed the country in the name of the Holy Crown). The restoration of the authority of the central administration took decades of work. The bulk of the nation headed by the House of Garai was with him; but in the southern provinces between the Sava and the Drava, the Horvathys with the support of King Tvrtko I of Bosnia, Mary's maternal uncle, proclaimed as their king Ladislaus, king of Naples, son of the murdered Charles II of Hungary. Not until 1395 did Nicholas II Garai succeed in suppressing them.[2] Mary died heavily pregnant in 1395. ease the pressure from Hungarian nobles, Sigismund tried to employ foreign advisors, which was not popular, and he had to promise not to give land and nominations to anyone other than Hungarian nobles. However, this was not applied to Stibor of Stiboricz, who was Sigismund's closest friend and advisor. On a number of occasions, Sigismund was imprisoned by nobles, but with help of the armies of Garai and Stibor of Stiboricz, he would regain power. of Nicopolis Sigismund of Hungary during the battle of Nicopolis in 1396. Painting by Ferenc Lohr (1896), main hall of the Castle of Vaja. 1396, Sigismund led the combined armies of Christendom against the Turks, who had taken advantage of the temporary helplessness of Hungary to extend their dominion to the banks of the Danube. This crusade, preached by Pope Boniface IX, was very popular in Hungary. The nobles flocked in their thousands to the royal standard, and were reinforced by volunteers from nearly every part of Europe. The most important contingent being that of the French led by John the Fearless, son of Philip II, Duke of Burgundy. Sigismund set out with 90,000 men and a flotilla of 70 galleys. After capturing Vidin, he camped with his Hungarian armies before the fortress of Nicopolis. Bayezid I raised the siege of Constantinople and, at the head of 140,000 men, completely defeated the Christian forces in the Battle of Nicopolis fought between the 25 and 28 September 1396.[2] returned by sea and through the realm of Zeta, where he ordained a local Montenegrin lord Durad II with the islands of Hvar and Korčula for resistance against the Turks; the islands were returned to Sigismund after Durad's death in April 1403. disaster at Nicopolis angered several Hungarian lords, leading to instability in the kingdom. Deprived of his authority in Hungary, Sigismund then turned his attention to securing the succession in Germany and Bohemia, and was recognized by his childless half-brother Wenceslaus IV as Vicar-General of the whole Empire. However, he was unable to support Wenceslaus when he was deposed in 1400, and Rupert of Germany, Elector Palatine, was elected German king in his stead.[2] of Luxembourg, official imprint. to Hungary his return to Hungary in 1401, Sigismund was imprisoned once and deposed twice. In 1401, Sigismund helped an uprising against Wenceslaus IV, during the course of which the Bohemian king was taken prisoner, and Sigismund ruled Bohemia for nineteen months. He released Wenceslaus in 1403. In the meantime, a group of Hungarian noblemen swore loyalty to the last Anjou monarch, Ladislaus of Naples, putting their hands on the relic of Saint Ladislas of Hungary in Nagyvarad (today Oradea). Ladislaus was the son of the murdered Charles II of Hungary, and thus a distant relative of the long dead King Louis I of Hungary. Ladislaus captured Zara (today Zadar) in 1403, but soon stopped any military advance. This struggle in turn led to a war with the Republic of Venice, as Ladislaus had sold the Dalmatian cities to the Venetians for 100,000 ducats[2] before leaving for his own land. In the following years Sigismund acted indirectly to thwart Ladislaus' attempts to conquer central Italy, by allying with the Italian cities resisting him and by applying diplomatic pressure on him. to his frequent absences attending to business in the other countries over which he ruled, he was obliged to consult Diets in Hungary with more frequency than his predecessors and institute the office of Palatine as chief administrator while he was away.[5] In 1404, Sigismund introduced the Placetum Regium. According to this decree, Papal bulls could not be pronounced in Hungary without the consent of the king. his long reign, the royal castle of Buda became probably the largest Gothic palace of the late Middle Ages. of Croatia horn of Sigismund of Luxembourg, before 1408. about 1406, Sigismund married Mary's cousin Barbara of Celje, daughter of Count Hermann II of Celje. Hermann's mother Catherine (of the House of Kotromanic) and Mary's mother Queen Elisabeth of Bosnia were sisters, or cousins who were adoptive sisters. managed to establish control in Slavonia. He did not hesitate to use violent methods (see Bloody Sabor of Krizevci), but from the river Sava to the south his control was weak. Sigismund personally led an army of almost 50,000 "crusaders" against the Bosnians, culminating with the Battle of Dobor in 1408, a massacre of about 200 noble families. in Serbia by Ottoman expansion, king Sigismund managed to strengthen the security of southern Hungarian borders by entering into a defensive alliance with despot Stefan Lazarevic of Serbia. In 1403, Hungarian possessions in northwestern regions of Serbia (city of Belgrade and the Banate of Macso), were given to despot Stefan, who pledged his allegiance to king Sigismund, remaining the king's loyal vassal until death in 1427. Stefan's successor George Branković of Serbia also pledged his allegiance to Sigismund, returning Belgrade to the king. By maintaining close relations with Serbian rulers, Sigismund succeeded in securing southern borders of his realm.[6][7] of the Dragon founded his personal order of knights, the Order of the Dragon, after the victory at Dobor. The main goal of the order was fighting the Ottoman Empire. Members of the order were mostly his political allies and supporters. The main members of the order were Sigismund's close allies Nicholas II Garay, Hermann II of Celje, Stibor of Stiboricz, and Pippo Spano. The most important European monarchs became members of the order. He encouraged international trade by abolishing internal duties, regulating tariffs on foreign goods and standardizing weights and measures throughout the country. of the Romans the death of King Rupert of Germany in 1410, Sigismund – ignoring the claims of his half-brother Wenceslaus – was elected as successor by three of the electors on 10 September 1410, but he was opposed by his cousin Jobst of Moravia, who had been elected by four electors in a different election on 1 October. Jobst's death 18 January 1411 removed this conflict and Sigismund was again elected king on 21 July 1411. His coronation was deferred until 8 November 1414, when it took place at Aachen.[2] alliances a number of occasions, and in 1410 in particular, Sigismund allied himself with the Teutonic Knights against Władysław II of Poland. In return for 300.000 ducats he would attack Poland from the south after the truce on St. John's Day, 24 June expired. Sigismund ordered his most loyal friend Stibor of Stiboricz to set up the attack on Poland. Stibor of Stiboricz was of Polish origin and from the main line of the powerful Clan of Ostoja that had also been against choosing Jagiello as King of Poland. With the support of Sigismund, Stibor become one of the most influential men in late medieval Europe, holding titles as Duke of Transylvania and owning about 25% of modern-day Slovakia, including 31 castles of which 15 were situated around the 406 km long Váh river with surrounding land that was given to him by Sigismund. In the diplomatic struggle to prevent war between Poland-Lithuania, which was supported by the Muscovites, and the Teutonic Knights, Sigismund used Stibor's fine diplomacy to gain financially. The Polish side appointed several negotiators and most of them were also from the Clan of Ostoja, distant relations of the Stibors. However, those "family meetings" could not prevent the war and an alliance of twenty-two western states formed an army against Poland in the Battle of Grunwald in July 1410. Stibor attacked then Nowy Sącz and burned it to the ground, but after that he returned with his army back to the Beckov Castle. After the Polish-Lithuanian victory in the Battle of Grunwald, the Teutonic knights had to pay a huge sum of silver to Poland as reparation and again, through diplomacy of his friend Stibor, Sigismund was able to borrow all this silver from King Władysław II of Poland on good conditions. In the light of facts about the diplomatic work of Stibor and the Clan of Ostoja that was following the politics of King Sigismund, one can question whether Sigismund actually joined the anti-Polish alliance.[8] of Constance and Barbara of Celje at the Council of Constance. 1412 to 1423, Sigismund campaigned against the Venetians in Italy. The king took advantage of the difficulties of Antipope John XXIII to obtain a promise that a council should be called in Constance in 1414 to settle the Western Schism. He took a leading part in the deliberations of this assembly, and during the sittings made a journey to France, England and Burgundy in a vain attempt to secure the abdication of the three rival popes. council ended in 1418, solving the Schism and — of great consequence to Sigismund's future career — having the Czech religious reformer, Jan Hus, burned at the stake for heresy in July 1415. The complicity of Sigismund in the death of Hus is a matter of controversy. He had granted him a safe-conduct and protested against his imprisonment;[2] and Hus was burned during Sigismund's absence. at one point during the council a cardinal corrected Sigismund's Latin, Sigismund replied Ego sum rex Romanus et super grammaticam ("I am king of the Romans and above grammar").[9] Thomas Carlyle nicknamed Sigismund "Super Grammaticam".[10][11] alliance with England against France, and a failed attempt, owing to the hostility of the princes, to secure peace in Germany by a league of the towns,[2] were his main acts during these years. Also, Sigismund granted control of the Margraviate of Brandenburg (which he had received back after Jobst's death) to Frederick I of Hohenzollern, burgrave of Nuremberg in 1415. This step made the Hohenzollern family one of the most important in Germany. began to shift his alliance from France to England after the French defeat at the Battle of Agincourt. The signing of the Treaty of Canterbury on 15 August 1416 culminated diplomatic efforts between Henry V of England and Sigismund and resulted in a defensive and offensive alliance against France. This, in turn, led the way to the resolution of the papal schism.[12] The close relationship that developed between Henry V and the Emperor resulted in Sigismund being inducted into the Order of the Garter.[13] Wars of Emperor Sigismund, painted by Albrecht Dürer after the emperor's death. 1419, the death of Wenceslaus IV left Sigismund titular King of Bohemia, but he had to wait for seventeen years before the Czech Estates would acknowledge him. Although the two dignities of King of the Romans and King of Bohemia added considerably to his importance, and indeed made him the nominal temporal head of Christendom, they conferred no increase of power and financially embarrassed him. It was only as King of Hungary that he had succeeded in establishing his authority and in doing anything for the order and good government of the land. Entrusting the government of Bohemia to Sofia of Bavaria, the widow of Wenceslaus, he hastened into Hungary.[2] Bohemians, who distrusted him as the betrayer of Hus, were soon in arms; and the flame was fanned when Sigismund declared his intention of prosecuting the war against heretics. Three campaigns against the Hussites ended in disaster although the army of his most loyal ally Stibor of Stiboricz and later his son Stibor of Beckov could hold the Hussite side away from the borders of the Kingdom. The Turks were again attacking Hungary. The king, unable to obtain support from the German princes, was powerless in Bohemia. His attempts at the diet of Nuremberg in 1422 to raise a mercenary army were foiled by the resistance of the towns; and in 1424 the electors, among whom was Sigismund's former ally, Frederick I of Hohenzollern, sought to strengthen their own authority at the expense of the king. Although the scheme failed, the danger to Germany from the Hussites led to the Union of Bingen, which virtually deprived Sigismund of the leadership of the war and the headship of Germany.[2] years 1428, Sigismund led another campaign against the Turks, but again with few results. In 1431, he went to Milan where on 25 November he received the Iron Crown as King of Italy; after which he remained for some time at Siena, negotiating for his coronation as emperor and for the recognition of the Council of Basel by Pope Eugenius IV. He was crowned emperor in Rome on 31 May 1433, and after obtaining his demands from the Pope returned to Bohemia, where he was recognized as king in 1436, though his power was little more than nominal.[2] Shortly after he was crowned, Pope Eugenius began attempts to create a new anti-Ottoman alliance.[14] This was sparked[citation needed] by an Albanian revolt against the Ottomans, which had begun in 1432. In 1435, Sigismund sent Fruzhin, a Bulgarian nobleman, to negotiate an alliance with the Albanians. He also sent Daud, a pretender to the Ottoman throne, in early 1436.[15] However, following the defeat of the rebels in 1436, plans for an anti-Ottoman alliance ended.[15] died on 9 December 1437 at Znojmo, Moravia (now Czech Republic), and as ordered in life, he was buried at Nagyvárad, Hungary (today Oradea, Romania), next to the tomb of the king Saint Ladislaus I of Hungary, who was the ideal of the perfect monarch, warrior and Christian for that time and was deeply venerated by Sigismund.[16] By his second wife, Barbara of Celje, he left an only daughter, Elisabeth of Luxembourg, who was married to Albert V, duke of Austria (later German king as Albert II) whom Sigismund named as his successor. As he left no sons, his line of the House of Luxembourg became extinct on his death.[2] and issue married twice but had little luck in securing the succession to his crowns. Each of his two marriages resulted in the birth of one child. His first-born child, probably a son, was born prematurely as a result of a horse riding accident suffered by Queen Mary of Hungary when she was well advanced in pregnancy. Mother and child both died shortly after the birth in the hills of Buda on 17 May 1395. This caused a deep succession crisis because Sigismund ruled over Hungary by right of his wife, and although he managed to keep his power, the crisis lasted until his second marriage to Barbara of Celje. Barbara's only child, born in the purple on 7 October 1409, probably in the castle of Visegrád, was Elisabeth of Luxembourg, the future queen consort of Hungary, Germany, and Bohemia. Queen Barbara was unable to give birth to any further issue. Elisabeth of Bohemia was thus the only surviving legitimate offspring of Sigismund. affiliations of arms of John Hunyadi. was known to speak fluent Hungarian, wore Hungarian-style royal clothes, and even grew his beard in the Hungarian fashion.[17] He also spent huge amounts of money during his reign to rebuild the Gothic castles of Buda and Visegrád in the Kingdom of Hungary, ordering the transportation of materials from Austria and Bohemia.[18] many affairs with women led to the birth of several legends, as the one that existed decades later during the reign of the King Matthias Corvinus of Hungary. According to this, John Hunyadi was Sigismund's illegitimate son. Sigismund gave a ring to the boy's mother when he was born, but one day in the forest a raven stole it from her, and the ring was only recovered after the bird was hunted down. It is said that this incident inspired the coat of arms of the Hunyadis, and later also appeared in the coat of arms of Matthias "Corvinus".[19] adopted the Hungarian reverence for Saint Ladislaus I of Hungary, who was considered to be an ideal Christian knight at that time. He went on pilgrimage several times to his tomb in Nagyvárad. Before Sigismund died, in Znaim, Moravia, he ordered to be buried next to the king saint.[20] Sigismundi Main article: Reformatio Sigismundi Reformatio Sigismundi appeared in connection with efforts to reform the Holy Roman Empire during the reign of Emperor Sigismund (1410–1437). It was presented in 1439 at the Council of Basel, published by an anonymous author, and referred to the injustice of the German rulers. It included a vision of Sigismund's about the appearance of a priest-king, Frederick, as well as plans for a wide reform of the monarchy and emperorship and the German empire. Sigismund, by the grace of God elected Holy Roman Emperor, forever August, King in Germany, of Hungary, Bohemia, Italy, Dalmatia, Croatia, Rama, Serbia, Galicia, Lodomeria, Cumania and Bulgaria; Duke of Silesia and Luxembourg; Margrave of Moravia, Lusatia and Brandenburg.[21][failed verification – see discussion] Heraldry of Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor Coat of Arms of the King of the Romans (c.1433-1486).svg Coat of arms of Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor.svg Coat of arms as King of the Romans (1433–1437) Coat of arms as Holy Roman Emperor (1433–1437), king of Hungary and Bohemia Sigismund Arms Hungarian Czech per pale.svg Sigismund Arms.svg Arms of the House of Luxembourg-Hungary-Bohemia Coat of Arms of Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor.png Coat of arms as Knight of the Garter THOMAS A KEMPIS, PRIEST, MONK, AND WRITER (24 JULY 1471) ; Venerable Theophilus the Abbot of Omutch, Pskov, Commemorated on October 21; CATHERINE OF SIENA, REFORMER AND SPIRITUAL TEACHER (29 APR 1380); Venerable Isidore the Fool-For-Christ and Wonderworker of Rostov, Commemorated on May 14; JAN HUS, PRIEST and MARTYR, 6 July 1415 ;

Belgium, 1391-1415, JOHN HUS, during pope controversy, denounced church abuses, didn't support archbishop's warlike pope
Czech Land Saint, 1391-1415, JOHN HUS; Controversy. then) Meanwhile, Hus had begun to denounce various church abuses in his sermons. His disputes with authority did not concern basic theological issues, but rather matters of church discipline and practice. The custom had arisen, at celebrations of the Lord's Supper, of distributing the consecrated bread to all Christians in good standing who desired to receive it, but restricting the chalice to the celebrant alone. Hus denounced this restriction as contrary to Holy Scripture and to the ancient tradition of the Church. He also held that Church officials ought to exercise spiritual powers only, and not be earthly governors. In 1412 his archbishop excommunicated him, not for heresy, but for insubordination. (The real problem was that Hus supported one papal claimant and the archbishop another. Hus's candidate was ultimately declared to be the true pope.) Matters came to a head when one claimant (later declared unfit) proclaimed a sale of indulgences to raise money for a war against his rivals. Hus was horrified at the idea of selling spiritual benefits to finance a war between two claimants to the title "Servant of the Servants of God," and said so. 1414 he was summoned to the Council of Constance, with the Emperor guaranteeing his personal safety even if found guilty. He was tried, and ordered to recant certain heretical doctrines. He replied that he had never held or taught the doctrines in question, and was willing to declare the doctrines false, but not willing to declare on oath that he had once taught them. The one point on which Hus could be said to have a doctrinal difference with the Council was that he taught that the office of the pope did not exist by Divine command, but was established by the Church that things might be done in an orderly fashion (a view that he shared with Thomas More). The Council, having just narrowly succeeded in uniting Western Christendom under a single pope after years of chaos, was not about to have its work undone. It accordingly found him guilty of heresy, and he was burned at the stake on 6 July 1415. JAN HUS, PRIEST and MARTYR, 6 July 1415, Commemorated July 6; Icon of the Mother of God œCzestochowaÂ, Commemorated on March 6; wonderworking Czestochowa Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos is to be found in a Roman Catholic monastery at Yasna Gora near the city of Czestochowa, Petrov Province. It is believed to be one of the seventy icons painted by the holy Apostle and Evangelist Luke (October 18). Tradition says that the icon was taken from Jerusalem when the Romans conquered the city in the year 66, and was hidden in a cave near Pella. The icon was given to Saint Helen (May 21) when she visited the Holy Land in 326, and she brought it back to Constantinople with her. in the eighth century the icon traveled to various places, including Galicia, Bavaria, and Moravia. Prince Leo, who founded the city of Lvov, brought the icon to Russia and placed it in the fortress of Belz. There many miracles took place before the holy icon. Vladislav of Opolsk acquired the icon when the Poles captured southwestern Russia. At the time that Vladislav ruled in Poland, the Tatars invaded Russia and soon appeared before the gates of the fortress of Belz. The prince ordered the icon to be placed atop the city walls as the Tatars began their siege of the fortress. Blood began dripping from the icon where it had been struck by an arrow or some other projectile. Those who witnessed it were fearfully amazed at the sight. The Tatars began to retreat when a dark haze covered them, and many of them died. this miraculous deliverance, Prince Vladislav planned to take the icon to Siesia and to place it in his castle at Opolsk. As preparations for the transfer were being made, Vladislav was overcome with an inexplicable fear. He began to pray before the holy icon, and that night he was told in a vision to take the icon to Yasna Gora near Czestochowa. Vladislav built a monastery at Yasna Gora in 1382 and gave the icon to an order of Roman Catholic monks. years later, followers of John Hus attacked Czestochowa and plundered the monastery. When they attempted to carry the Czestochowa Icon away in a cart, the horses refused to move from the spot, held back by some invisible power. One of the Hussites became angry and threw the icon onto the ground, while another stabbed the face of the Virgin with his sword. The first man was struck dead, and the hand of the second man shriveled up. other invaders also suffered punishment from God. Some of them died on the spot, while others became blind. Although many of the monastery’s treasures were stolen by the Hussites, the wonderworking Czestochowa Icon was left behind. Carl X Gustav of Sweden occupied most of Poland in the seventeenth century, and his forces remained virtually undefeated until they fought a battle near Yasna Gora and the monastery where the icon was kept. With the help of the Most Holy Theotokos, the Poles were able to overcome the Swedes and end the war in 1656. At Lvov, King Jan Casimir officially decreed that Mother of God was the Queen of Poland, and that the nation was under her protection. miracles have been worked by the Czestochowa Icon, and are recorded in a book which is kept at the Czestochowa monastery. of the icon are found in many Orthodox and Roman Catholic monasteries. Some of these copies are venerated in the village of Pisarevkain in the Volhynia Province (June 29 and September 8), at Verhnaya Syrovatka in the Kharkov Province, at Tyvrov in the Vinits Province (Holy Spirit day), in the Kazan Cathedral at Saint Petersburg, and in several other places.

Belgium, 1391-1415, JAN HUS, Bohemia, denounced church abuses not theological, burned after E's promise , Moravians
Czech Lands, 1391-1415, JAN HUS, Bohemia, Western Czech Republic, denounced church abuses in discipline and practice, not theological, church spritual govenors, not earthly, found guilty for saying pope not divine office, burned right after Council of Constance, followers became Moravians; Bohemia; JAN HUS, PRIEST and MARTYR, 6 July 1415; Huss (Jan Hus) was born in Bohemia (now part of the Czech Republic) in about 1371. received a master's degree from Charles University in Prague in 1396, became a professor of theology in 1398, was ordained to the priesthood in 1400, was made rector of the University in 1402, and in 1404 received a bachelor's degree in theology (presumably a more advanced degree than the term suggests today). his day, there was a crisis of authority in the Western Church. 1305, under pressure from the King of France, the seat of the Popes was moved from Rome to Avignon in France, where it remained for 70 years. period is called the Babylonian Captivity of the Papacy, suggesting the 70 years that Jerusalem lay desolate after when the Jews were deported to Babylon.) 1376, the then pope returned to Rome. When he died soon after, the cardinals, mostly French, were disposed to elect a French Pope, but the people of Rome objected, fearing that a French Pope would move the Papacy back to France. cardinals therefore elected an Italian Pope, and then fled elsewhere, where they elected a French Pope and said that the first election had been under duress, and was void. there were two (later three) claimants for the Papal Office. Council of Constance was called to settle the matter. One claimant recognized the Council and then abdicated. The Council responded by proclaiming that he had been the true Pope. It then deposed the other two, and elected a new Pope, thus healing the schism. Hus had begun to denounce various church abuses in his sermons. His disputes with authority did not concern basic theological issues, but rather matters of church discipline and practice. custom had arisen, at celebrations of the Lord's Supper, of distributing the consecrated bread to all Christians in good standing who desired to receive it, but restricting the chalice to the celebrant alone. denounced this restriction as contrary to Holy Scripture and to the ancient tradition of the Church. also held that Church officials ought to exercise spiritual powers only, and not be earthly governors. 1412 his archbishop excommunicated him, not for heresy, but for insubordination. real problem was that Hus supported one papal claimant and the archbishop another. Hus's candidate was ultimately declared to be the true pope.) came to a head when one claimant (later declared unfit) proclaimed a sale of indulgences to raise money for a war against his rivals. was horrified at the idea of selling spiritual benefits to finance a war between two claimants to the title "Servant of the Servants of God," and said so. 1414 he was summoned to the Council of Constance, with the Emperor guaranteeing his personal safety even if found guilty. was tried, and ordered to recant certain heretical doctrines. replied that he had never held or taught the doctrines in question, and was willing to declare the doctrines false, but not willing to declare on oath that he had once taught them. one point on which Hus could be said to have a doctrinal difference with the Council was that he taught that the office of the pope did not exist by Divine command, but was established by the Church that things might be done in an orderly fashion (a view that he shared with Thomas More). Council, having just narrowly succeeded in uniting Western Christendom under a single pope after years of chaos, was not about to have its work undone. It accordingly found him guilty of heresy, and he was burned at the stake on 6 July 1415. his death, his followers continued to insist on the importance of administering the Holy Communion in both kinds, and defeated several armies sent against them. 1436 a pact was signed, by which the Church in Bohemia was authorized to administer Chalice as well as Host to all communicants. followers of John Huss and his fellow martyr Jerome of Prague became known as the Czech Brethren and later as the Moravians. Moravian Church survives to this day, and has had a considerable influence on the Lutheran movement. Luther suddenly became famous after the publication of his 95 Theses, cartoons and graffiti began to appear implying that Luther was the spiritual heir of John Huss. When Luther encountered the Pope's representative Johannes Eck, in a crucial debate, Eck sidestepped the questions of indulgences and of justification by faith, and instead asked Luther whether the Church had been right to condemn Hus. Luther, after thinking it over, said that Hus had been unjustly condemned, the whole question of the authority of Popes and Councils was raised. — by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1392-1471, Thomas A Kempis, Priest, Monk, Writer, Kempen, Germany
Germany, 1400, Thomas A Kempis, Priest, Monk, Writer, Kempen, Germany ; à Kempis (c. 1380 - 25 July 1471;[2] German: Thomas von Kempen; Dutch: Thomas van Kempen[3]) was a German-Dutch canon regular of the late medieval period and the author of The Imitation of Christ, one of the most popular and best known Christian devotional books. His name means "Thomas of Kempen", Kempen being his home town. was a member of the Modern Devotion, a spiritual movement during the late medieval period, and a follower of Geert Groote and Florens Radewyns, the founders of the Brethren of the Common Life.[4] was born in Kempen in the Rhineland.[5] His surname at birth was Hemerken (or Hammerlein), meaning the family's profession, "little hammer," Latinized into "Malleolus."[6] His father, Johann, was a blacksmith and his mother, Gertrud, was a schoolmistress.[5] 1392, Thomas followed his brother, Johann, to Deventer in the Netherlands in order to attend the noted Latin school there. While attending this school, Thomas encountered the Brethren of the Common Life, followers of Gerard Groote's Modern Devotion. He attended school in Deventer from 1392 to 1399.[5] leaving school, Thomas went to the nearby city of Zwolle to visit his brother again, after Johann had become the prior of the Monastery of Mount St. Agnes there. This community was one of the Canons Regular of the Congregation of Windesheim, founded by disciples of Groote in order to provide a way of life more in keeping with the norms of monastic life of the period. Thomas himself entered Mount St. Agnes in 1406. He was not ordained a priest, however, until almost a decade later. He became a prolific copyist and writer. Thomas received Holy Orders in 1413[7] and was made sub-prior of the monastery in 1429.[8] first tenure of office as subprior was interrupted by the exile of the community from Agnetenberg (1429). A dispute had arisen in connection with an appointment to the vacant See of Utrecht. Pope Martin V rejected the nomination of Bishop-elect Rudolf van Diepholt, and imposed an interdict. The Canons remained in exile in observance of the interdict until the question was settled (1432). During this time, Thomas was sent to Arnhem to care for his ailing brother. He remained there until his brother died in November, 1432.[7] Thomas spent his time between devotional exercises in writing and in copying manuscripts. He copied the Bible no fewer than four times,[7] one of the copies being preserved at Darmstadt, Germany, in five volumes. In its teachings he was widely read and his works abound with biblical quotations, especially from the New Testament. subprior he was charged with instructing novices, and in that capacity wrote four booklets between 1420 and 1427, later collected and named after the title of the first chapter of the first booklet: The Imitation of Christ. Thomas More said it was one of the three books everybody ought to own.[9] Thirteen translations of the Imitatio Christi and three paraphrases in English seem to have been published between 1500 and 1700.[10] died near Zwolle in 1471. Opera spirituale, 1568. Kempis's 1441 autograph manuscript of The Imitation of Christ is available in the Bibliothèque Royale in Brussels (shelfmark: MS 5455-61).[11] also wrote the biographies of New Devotion members—Gerard Groote, Floris Radewijns, Jan van de Gronde, and Jan Brinckerinck.[11] important works include a series of sermons to the novices of St. Augustine Monastery, including Prayers and Meditations on the Life of Christ, Meditations on the Incarnation of Christ, Of True Compunction of Heart, Soliloquy of the Soul, Garden of Roses, Valley of Lilies, and a Life[12] of St. Lidwina of Schiedam. The following quotes are attributed to him: "Without the Way, there is no going, Without the Truth, there is no knowing, Without the Life, there is no living." "If thou wilt receive profit, read with humility, simplicity, and faith, and seek not at any time the fame of being learned." "At the Day of Judgement we shall not be asked what we have read, but what we have done." — The Imitation of Christ, Book I, ch. 3 "For man proposes, but God disposes" — The Imitation of Christ, Book I, ch. 19 "If, however, you seek Jesus in all things, you will surely find Him. " — The Imitation of Christ, Book II, ch. 7 "In angello cum libello" (with slight variations), "In a little corner with a little book" — Shortened form of a motto often ascribed to, or associated with, Thomas a Kempis. The complete saying as reported by an early biographer is a mixture of Latin and Dutch and runs as follows: "In omnibus requiem quaesivi, sed non inveni, nisi in hoexkens ende boexkens", "I have sought everywhere for peace, but I have found it not, save in nooks and in books."[13][a] monument was dedicated to his memory in the presence of the archbishop of Utrecht in St Michael's Church, Zwolle, on November 11, 1897. In 1964, this church closed, causing his shrine to be moved to a new St. Michael's Church outside the centre of Zwolle. In 2005, this church also closed and his shrine was moved to the Onze-Lieve-Vrouw-ten-Hemelopneming kerk (Assumption of Mary church) in the centre of Zwolle.[14] Kempen, Germany (North Rhine Westphalia) ; THOMAS A KEMPIS, PRIEST, MONK, AND WRITER (24 JULY 1471) ;

Belgium, 1400, 15th-17th Century, Holy Roman Empire Folder, Protestant Cathilic Moslem Wars, Napoleon

Belgium, 1400-1499, 15th Century Folder, HRE, Agincourt, 100 Yrs War, Council of Florence, Priinting

Belgium, 1406, Juliana oVyazma, virtues&chastity, wYuri fled Vitovt over hill tTver, adultry, J wounded Y, Y killed J
Russia, Kiev, 1406, Juliana oVyazma, Ukraine (Vyazna River 1) &Novy Torg Tver close by across the hill in Vladai Hills, Princess oVyazma&Novy Torg, Maximus Danilov daughter, known virtues&chastity, Husband Prince Simeon oV wPrince Yuri oSmolensk fled because Lithuanian P Vitovt had seized their lands, then Basil oMoscow gave Torzhok Tver tThem, Yuri wanted adultry wJ, but J faithful, Yuri killed husband Simeon, tried to rape, but J wounded him wKnife, J ordered her hands feet cut off and body thrown into Tversta River, Yuri fled tTartars, no peace, tRyazan wilderness; Vyazma; St Juliana the Princess of Vyazma, Commemorated December 21 ; Juliana, Princess of Vyazma and Novy Torg, daughter of the noble Maximus Danilov, known for her virtues and her chastity. spouse, Prince Simeon of Vyazma, and also Prince Yuri of Smolensk, were compelled to flee their native lands, which the Lithuanian prince Vitovt had seized. Prince Basil of Moscow bestowed the Tver city of Torzhok upon the exiled princes. Yuri became captivated by Juliana’s beauty and tried in every way to persuade her to commit adultery, Juliana remained faithful to her husband. a feast, Prince Yuri killed Juliana’s husband, in the hope of taking her by force. Juliana resisted the ravisher, wounding him with a knife. enraged Prince Yuri ordered that her hands and feet be cut off, and that her body be thrown into the Tvertsa River. by his conscience and censured by everyone, Prince Yuri fled to the Tatars, even there he did not find peace. settled in the Ryazan wilderness where he died in 1408. martyrdom of Saint Juliana occurred in the winter of 1406. the spring of 1407, they saw the body of Princess Juliana floating in the river. A certain peasant heard a voice from above, commanding that the body of Saint Juliana be buried in the Torzhok cathedral on the right side by the south doors. tomb for her body was afterwards built at the Savior-Transfiguration cathedral, where many received healing from her. connection with the glorification of Saint Juliana on June 2, 1819 a chapel was built on the right-hand side, and dedicated to her. the cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Lord, where earlier there had been a chapel over the grave of the saint, a church was built and also dedicated to Saint Juliana in 1906.

Belgium, 1414-1418, Council of Constance (Lake Constance), ended papal scism
Council of Constance, 1414-1418 (Lake Constance); JAN HUS, PRIEST and MARTYR, 6 July 1415;

Belgium, 1415, Holy Roman Empire, Battle of Agincourt, England V, 100 Yrs War
Battle of Agincourt; Hundred Years War (1337-1453); THOMAS A KEMPIS, PRIEST, MONK, AND WRITER (24 JULY 1471) ; GEORGE, SOLDIER and MARTYR, 23 APRIL 303, Commemorated April 23; JOAN OF ARC, VISIONARY, 30 May 1431;

Belgium, 1429-1431, JOAN OF ARC, called to save France by voices, Angel Michael and see the girls accounts below
France, 1429-1431, JOAN OF ARC, Burgundy, France (Morvan Hills, rivers source area, Saone drainage), called to save France by voices, Angel Michael, Catherine of Alexandria, Marina of Pisidia, see the girls accounts below, Joan was successful in uniting France, but burned at the stake for being a witch; Burgundy; JOAN OF ARC, VISIONARY, 30 May 1431; of Arc was born in France, near the border of Burgundy, on 6 January 1412. her time the King of England claimed the crown of France by the laws of inheritance, and English troops were fighting in France to support that claim. English King inherited through a woman, and the French claimants, the House of Valois, asserted that French law did not allow the crown to be inherited by or through a woman.) V of England won a decisive victory at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415 (see Shakespeare's play Henry V, filmed in 1944 starring Laurence Olivier and in 1993 starring Kenneth Branagh, who emphasizes the darker aspects of war) and signed an agreement with the Valois monarch Charles VI, providing that Charles should keep his crown during his lifetime, that his daughter Catherine should marry Henry, and that Henry should be the next king. VI had a son (the Dauphin), but the Queen took an oath that she had been unfaithful to her husband, and that the Dauphin was not the King's son, and therefore had no right to inherit the throne. 1422, Henry V died, leaving an infant son who became Henry VI of England. England claimed the throne of France in his name. Duke of Burgundy supported the English claim, and was allied with England. French claimant, the Dauphin (later Charles VII), had not been crowned. Since many Frenchmen thought that his mother the Queen might be telling the truth about his illegitimacy, the story largely paralyzed the national will to fight for Charles. this situation came Joan. she was thirteen, she began to hear voices telling her that she was called to save France. she identified these voices as those of Michael the Archangel (mentioned in the Bible in Daniel and Jude and Revelation), Catherine of Alexandria and Margaret of Antioch, two early virgin martyrs about whom little is known historically as we have them contain many blatant improbabilities, and even among thoroughly conservative Roman Catholics, they are widely thought to be fictional persons. (for the real accounts of their lives (see Orthodox accounts below, they are both normal christian saint stories) but who were popular in France at that time. as she said, under direction from her voices, she persuaded a local baron to send her to the castle of Charles at Chinon, where she spoke with the Dauphin (French word for the heir to the throne until he is officially crowned king), and convinced him that her message was genuine. city of Orleans was under siege by the English. Joan and an army marched to the scene and raised the siege (8 May 1429). then proceeded to win other battles, and to bring Charles to Rheims to be crowned king. However, the king refused to take her advice that he should press the military advantage. When she attempted to recapture Paris from the English, he denied her adequate support, and the attempt failed. Joan of Arc being interrogated by an English cardinal, by Ingres May 1430 she was taken prisoner in battle, and tried on an accusation of sorcery and heresy. made no effort to ransom her or rescue her, although her first captors would almost certainly have accepted a ransom. was convicted and burned at the stake on 30 May 1431, being then a little less than nineteen and a half years old. French, however, eventually went on to win the war and to expel the English from France. Charles, perhaps because it was not to his advantage to have it said that he had been crowned by a witch and a heretic, and that he owed his victories and his kingdom to a pact with the Devil, pressured the Church courts for a review of the verdict against Joan, and got her condemnation annulled in 1456. came to be regarded as a French national hero, and was eventually canonized by the Pope in May 1920. day (or a Sunday close to it) is a French national holiday. She is ranked with Denis of Paris and Remi of Rheims as one of France's three great national saints. is honored by the Church, not for winning military victories, or even because her visions were necessarily authentic, but because, being persuaded of the will of God for her life, she responded in faith and obedience to that will as she understood it. many literary works inspired by the life of Joan, I mention three: Bernard Shaw has written a play about her, Saint Joan. It has a preface for the reader which should not be skipped Twain has a novel, Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc, supposedly related by a follower of Joan. Twain is a devoted and uncritical admirer of Joan. von Schiller, friend of Goethe and eminent German playwright, has a play, Die Jungfrau von Orleans, which has been highly praised. It is available in translation. — by James Kiefer 0717 - Greatmartyr Marina (Margaret) of Antioch in Pisidia; Holy Great Martyr Marina was born in Asia Minor, in the city of Antioch of Pisidia (southern Asia Minor), into the family of a pagan priest. infancy she lost her mother, and her father gave her into the care of a nursemaid, who raised Marina in the Orthodox Faith. learning that his daughter had become a Christian, the father angrily disowned her. the time of the persecution against Christians under the emperor Diocletian (284-305), when she was fifteen years old, Saint Marina was arrested and locked up in prison. With firm trust in the will of God and His help, the young prisoner prepared for her impending fate. governor Olymbrios, charmed with the beautiful girl, tried to persuade her to renounce the Christian Faith and become his wife. But the saint, unswayed, refused his offers. The vexed governor gave the holy martyr over to torture. Having beaten her fiercely, they fastened the saint with nails to a board and tore at her body with tridents. The governor himself, unable to bear the horror of these tortures, hid his face in his hands. But the holy martyr remained unyielding. Thrown for the night into prison, she was granted heavenly aid and healed of her wounds. stripped her and tied her to a tree, then burned the martyr with fire. Barely alive, the martyr prayed: “Lord, You have granted me to go through fire for Your Name, grant me also to go through the water of holy Baptism.” the word “water”, the governor gave orders to drown the saint in a large cauldron. martyr besought the Lord that this manner of execution should become for her holy Baptism. they plunged her into the water, there suddenly shone a light, and a snow-white dove came down from Heaven, bearing in its beak a golden crown. The fetters put upon Saint Marina came apart by themselves. The martyr stood up in the fount of Baptism glorifying the Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Saint Marina emerged from the fount completely healed, without any trace of burns. at this miracle, the people glorified the True God, and many came to believe. This brought the governor into a rage, and he gave orders to kill anyone who might confess the Name of Christ. 15,000 Christians perished there, and the holy Martyr Marina was beheaded. The sufferings of the Great Martyr Marina were described by an eyewitness of the event, named Theotimos. until the taking of Constantinople by Western crusaders in the year 1204, the relics of the Great Martyr Marina were in the Panteponteia monastery. According to other sources, they were located in Antioch until the year 908 and from there transferred to Italy. Now they are in Athens, in a church dedicated to the holy Virgin Martyr. Her venerable hand was transferred to Mount Athos, to the Batopedi monastery. 1124 - Greatmartyr Catherine of Alexandria; Holy Great Martyr Katherine was the daughter of Konstos, the governor of Alexandria, Egypt during the reign of Emperor Maximian (305-313). in the capital, the center of Hellenistic knowledge, and possessed of a rare beauty and intellect, Katherine received an excellent education, studying the works of the greatest philosophers and teachers of antiquity. men from the most worthy families of the empire sought the hand of the beautiful Katherine, but she was not interested in any of them. She told her parents that she would enter into marriage only with someone who surpassed her in nobility, wealth, comeliness and wisdom. ’s mother, a secret Christian, sent her to her own Spiritual Father, a saintly Elder living in a cave outside the city, for advice. After listening to Katherine, the Elder said that he knew of someone who surpassed her in everything. “His countenance is more radiant than the shining of the sun, and all of creation is governed by His wisdom. His riches are given to all the nations of the world, yet they never diminish. His compassion is unequaled.” description of the Heavenly Bridegroom produced an ardent desire in the soul of the holy maiden to see Him. "If you do as I tell you,” said the monk, “you will gaze upon the countenance of this illustrious man.” In parting, the Elder gave Katherine an icon of the Theotokos with the Divine Child on Her arm and told her to pray with faith to the Queen of Heaven, the Mother of the Heavenly Bridegroom, and she would hear Katherine and grant her heart’s desire. prayed all night and was permitted to see the Most Holy Virgin, Who said to her Divine Son, “Behold Thy handmaiden Katherine, how fair and virtuous she is.” the Child turned His face away from her saying, “No, she is ugly and unbelieving. She is a foolish pauper, and I cannot bear to look at her until she forsakes her impiety.” returned again to the Elder deeply saddened, and told him what she had seen in the dream. He received her, instructed her in the faith of Christ, admonished her to preserve her purity and integrity and to pray unceasingly. then received the Mystery of Holy Baptism from him. Again Saint Katherine had a vision of the Most Holy Theotokos with her Child. Now the Lord looked at her tenderly and gave her a beautiful ring, a wondrous token of her betrothal to the Heavenly Bridegroom (this ring is still on her hand). that time Emperor Maximian was in Alexandria for a pagan festival. Therefore, the celebration was especially splendid and crowded. cries of the sacrificial animals, the smoke and the smell of the sacrifices, the endless blaze of fires, and the bustling crowds at the arenas defiled the city of Alexandria. Human victims also were brought, the confessors of Christ, who would not deny Him under torture. They were condemned to death in the fire. love for the Christian martyrs, and her fervent desire to ease their sufferings, compelled her to speak to the pagan priest and to Emperor Maximian. herself, the Saint confessed her faith in the One True God, and exposed the errors of the pagans. beauty of the maiden captivated the Emperor. In order to convince her of the superiority of pagan wisdom, the Emperor ordered fifty of the most learned philosophers and rhetoricians of the Empire to dispute with her, but the Saint got the better of the wise men, so that they came to believe in Christ themselves. Katherine made the Sign of the Cross over the martyrs, and they bravely accepted death for Christ and were burnt alive by order of the Emperor. to persuade the Saint, Maximian tried to entice her with the promise of riches and fame. Hearing her angry refusal, the Emperor ordered his men to subject the Saint to terrible tortures, and then throw her in prison. Empress Augusta, who had heard much about the Saint, wanted to see her. She prevailed upon the military commander Porphyrios to accompany her to the prison with a detachment of soldiers. The Empress was impressed by Katherine's strong spirit, and her face was radiant with divine grace. The holy martyr explained the Christian Faith to them, and they were converted to Christ. the following day, they again brought the martyr to the judgment court where, under the threat of being broken on the wheel, she was urged to renounce the Christian Faith and to offer sacrifice to the "gods." The Saint steadfastly confessed Christ and she was taken to be tortured on four wheels with sharp iron spikes, an Angel smashed the instruments of execution, which shattered into pieces with many pagans standing nearby. seeing this miracle, the Empress Augusta and the imperial courtier Porphyrios and 200 soldiers confessed their faith in Christ before everyone, and they were beheaded. tried again to entice the holy martyr, offering to marry her, and again he was refused. Saint Katherine remained faithful to her heavenly Bridegroom Christ, and after praying to Him, she laid her head on the block beneath the executioner’s sword. relics of Saint Katherine were taken by the Angels to Mount Sinai. the VI century, the venerable head and left hand of the holy martyr were found through a revelation and transferred with honor to the newly-constructed church of the Monastery on Mount Sinai, built by the holy Emperor Justinian (November 14). Katherine is called upon for relief and assistance during a difficult childbirth. Pilgrims to her monastery on Mount Sinai are given souvenir rings as a remembrance of their visit. Katherine is commemorated on November 25 in Greek usage.

Belgium, 1431-1444, Council of Florence, to curtail power and resources of the pope
Belgium, Holy Roman Empire Council, 1431-1444, Council of Florence; St Mark the Archbishop of Ephesus, Commemorated on January 19;

Belgium, 1431-1457, St Mark tArchbishop oEphesus, alone defended Orthodoxy aCouncil of Florence, against Papal Supremacy
Northern Italy, 1431-1457, St Mark the Archbishop of Ephesus, alone defended Orthodoxy aCouncil of Florence, against Papal Supremacy, against theological compromise& Political expediency, Byzantine Emperor seeking military assistance against Moslems, M's drawing close tConstan, Mark countered wPure Theology, from Holy Fathers, members from his Ephesian delegation tried changing his mind, he countered, there can be no compromis in matters Orthodox faith. but they signed Tomos oUnion, mark only discenter, died 1457 a52; a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ephesus">Ephesus; Council of Florence; St Mark the Archbishop of Ephesus, Commemorated January 19; Mark Eugenikos, Archbishop of Ephesus, was a stalwart defender of Orthodoxy at the Council of Florence. would not agree to a union with Rome which was based on theological compromise political expediency (the Byzantine Emperor was seeking military assistance from the West against the Moslems who were drawing ever closer to Constantinople). Mark countered the arguments of his opponents, from the well of pure theology, the teachings of the holy Fathers. the members of his own delegation tried to pressure him into accepting the Union replied, “There can be no compromise in matters of the Orthodox Faith.” the members of the Orthodox delegation signed the Tomos of Union, Saint Mark was the only one who refused to do so. he returned from Florence, Saint Mark urged the inhabitants of Constantinople to repudiate the dishonorable document of union. died in 1457 at the age of fifty-two, admired and honored by all.

Belgium, 1433-1437, HRE Emperor, Sigismund, crusade leader in 1396, Order of the Dragon, CofC, Husite Wars
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1433-1437, Sigismund ; of Luxembourg (15 February 1368 - 9 December 1437) was prince-elector of Brandenburg from 1378 until 1388 and from 1411 until 1415, king of Hungary and Croatia from 1387, king of Germany from 1411, king of Bohemia from 1419, king of Italy from 1431, and Holy Roman Emperor from 1433 until 1437, and the last male member of the House of Luxembourg.[1] was born in Nuremberg, the son of Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV and Elizabeth of Pomerania. married Queen Mary of Hungary in 1385 and was crowned King of Hungary soon after. He fought to restore and maintain authority to the throne. Mary died in 1395, leaving Sigismund the sole ruler of Hungary. 1396, Sigismund led the Crusade of Nicopolis, but was decisively defeated by the Ottoman Empire. he founded the Order of the Dragon to fight the Turks and secured the thrones of Croatia, Germany and Bohemia. Sigismund was one of the driving forces behind the Council of Constance (1414-1418) that ended the Papal Schism, but which also led to the Hussite Wars that dominated the later period of his life. 1433, Sigismund was crowned Holy Roman Emperor and ruled until his death in 1437. St Theodosius (Prince Theodore of Ostrog) of the Kiev Caves, Commemorated on August 11; Venerable Theodore (In monasticism Theodosius) the Prince of Ostrog, Commemorated on October 10 ; Venerable Isidore the Fool-For-Christ and Wonderworker of Rostov, Commemorated on May 14;

Belgium, 1437-1493, HRE Emperor, Frederick III, first Hapsburg, reuniting Hapsburg Lands of Austria, then Hungary, Burgundy
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1437-1493, Frederick III Holy Roman Emperor; III (21 September 1415 - 19 August 1493) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1452 until his death. was the first emperor of the House of Habsburg, and the fourth member of the House of Habsburg to be elected King of Germany after Rudolf I of Germany, Albert I in the 13th century and his predecessor Albert II of Germany. He was the penultimate emperor to be crowned by the Pope, and the last to be crowned in Rome. to his imperial coronation, he was duke of the Inner Austrian lands of Styria, Carinthia and Carniola from 1424, and also acted as regent over the Duchy of Austria (as Frederick V) from 1439. He was elected and crowned King of Germany (as Frederick IV) in 1440.[1] He was the longest-reigning German monarch when in 1493, after ruling his domains for more than 53 years, he was succeeded by his son Maximilian I. his reign, Frederick concentrated on re-uniting the Habsburg "hereditary lands" of Austria and took a lesser interest in Imperial affairs. Nevertheless, by his dynastic entitlement to Hungary as well as by the Burgundian inheritance, he laid the foundations for the later Habsburg Empire. as "Arch-Sleepyhead of the Holy Roman Empire" (German: Erzschlafmütze) during his lifetime,[2] he is today increasingly seen as an effective ruler. - THOMAS A KEMPIS, PRIEST, MONK, AND WRITER (24 JULY 1471) ; Lucas Cranach of ALBRECHT DEÂœRER, 1528, MATTHIAS GREÂœNEWALD, 1529, LUCAS CRANACH the ELDER, 1553,ARTISTS, 5 August; Matthias Grunewald of ALBRECHT DEÂœRER, 1528, MATTHIAS GREÂœNEWALD, 1529, LUCAS CRANACH the ELDER, 1553, ARTISTS, 5 August ; Venerable Serapion of Spaso-Eleazar Monastery, Pskov, Commemorated September 7 ; Venerable Hilarion the Abbot of Gdov and Pskov Lake, Commemorated on October 21; St Bassian of Uglich, Commemorated on February 12; Venerable Hilarion of Pskov, Lake Gdov, Commemorated on March 28; Venerable Isidore the Fool-For-Christ and Wonderworker of Rostov, Commemorated on May 14;

Belgium, 1463, Isidore + 72, Yuriev, Estonia, Livonian Knight Latins violate treaty to protect Orthodox, pushed all under ice
Estonia, 1463, Isidore +72, Yuriev, Estonia (Embach River 2), Livonian Knight Latins violate treaty to protect Orthodox, tried to force conversion to Catholicism, pushed them all into ice hole for blessing the water after Theophany; Yuriev, Estonia; Yuriev and Velyansk (i.e., Thellin); Hieromartyr Isidore and 72 Others at Yuriev, Estonia, Commemorated January 8 ; Isidore was priest of Saint Nicholas church in the city of Yuriev (Derpto, at present Taru in Estonia). to the terms of a treaty concluded in 1463 between the Moscow Great Prince Ivan III and the Livonian knights, the latter were obligated to extend every protection to the Orthodox at Derpto. But the Livonian knights (who were German Catholics) broke the treaty and tried to force the Orthodox to become Roman Catholics. priest Isidore bravely stood forth in defense of Orthodoxy, preferring to accept a martyr’s crown rather than submit to the Catholics. The Latin bishop and the Roman Catholic nobles of Yuriev had been told that Saint Isidore and the Orthodox population of the city had spoken against the faith and customs of the Germans. Saint Isidore and seventy-two of his parishioners went to bless the waters of the River Omovzha (or Emaiyga, now Emajogi) for the Feast of Theophany, they were arrested and brought before the Latin bishop Andrew and the civil judges of the city. Pressure was brought on them to convert to Catholicism, but the saint and his flock refused to renounce Christ or the Orthodox Faith. Enraged by this, the authorities had them thrown into prison. Isidore encouraged his flock to prepare themselves for death, and not to fear torture. He partook of the reserved Gifts he carried with him, then communed all the men, women, and children with the Holy and Life-Giving Mysteries of Christ. the bishop and the judges summoned the Orthodox to appear before them once more, demanding that they convert to Catholicism. When they refused to do so, they were dragged back to the river and pushed through the hole in the ice that they had cut to bless the water. So they all suffered and died for Christ, Who bestowed on them crowns of unfading glory. the spring floods, the incorrupt bodies of the holy martyrs, including the fully-vested body of the hieromartyr Isidore, were found by Russian merchants journeying along the river bank. They buried the saints around the church of Saint Nicholas. people began to venerate these saints shortly after their death, they were not officially glorified by the Church until 1897.

Belgium, 1490-1528, Matthias Grunewald, painter of religious works, ignored classicism, antithesis to Durer
Colmar, Alsace, on the Maginot Line, France; Matthias Grunewald of ALBRECHT DÜRER, 1528, MATTHIAS GRÜNEWALD, 1529, LUCAS CRANACH the ELDER, 1553, ARTISTS, 5 August, Commemorated August 5; Grunewald, (c. 1470 - August 31, 1528), was an important German Renaissance painter of religious works, who ignored Renaissance classicism to continue the expressive and intense style of late medieval Central European art into the 16th century. Only ten paintings—several consisting of many panels—and thirty-five drawings survive, all religious, although many others were lost at sea in the Baltic on their way to Sweden as war booty. His reputation was obscured until the late nineteenth century, and many of his paintings were attributed to Albrecht Dürer, who is now seen as his stylistic antithesis. His largest and most famous work is the Isenheim Altarpiece in Colmar, Alsace. (More at Wikipedia)

Belgium, 1490-1550, Macarius tRoman oNovgorod, fWealthy R's, but studied lives otFathers, so God led him N, Igumen by dLlight
Rome, 1490-1550, Macarius tRoman oNovgorod, fWealthy Roman family, Protestant Reformation time, but he studied lives otFathers, focused on saving his soul, God led him become Orthodox, left for Russia without money, wearing old garment, tNovgorod, many churches monasteries there, tSvir, there Alex oSvir tonsured him monk, but he longed for solitary life, tIsland in Lezna r, 45 miles fNovgorod, mosquito breeding ground, berries roots herbs, fed&pet bears, discovered bHunters, because divine light, fed them, spoke prayed showed way out of marsh, many people came, chose place further out on Lesna, but pillar fire at night and fragrant smoke at day exposed him, some asked to stay, saw it was Lord's will he blessed them to build cells, 1540 wooden church, ordained as priest by Marcarius oNovgorod& Met All Russia, he example tOthers, clairvoyance wonderworking gifts, returned to solitary island after several yrs, fell asleep 1550, his monastery distinguished by spiritual life, Novgorod monasteries plundered by Sweds 17th C, Hermitage burned 1615, monks put to sword, 18th C dependency Nevsky Lavra St Pete, closed by Catherine 1764 like she closed other m ; Rome; Venerable Macarius the Roman of Novgorod, Commemorated on January 19 ; Macarius the Roman was born at the end of the fifteenth century into a wealthy family of Rome. parents raised him in piety and gave him an excellent education. might have expected a successful career in public service, he did not desire honors or earthly glory. he focused on how to save his soul. lived in an age when the Christian West was shaken by the Protestant Reformation. others around him were pursuing luxury and lascivious pleasures, he studied the Holy Scriptures and the writings of the Fathers. Macarius was grieved to see so many darkened by sin and worldly vanity, and was disturbed by the rebellions and conflicts within the Western Church. tears, he asked God to show him the path of salvation, and his prayer did not go unanswered. came to realize that he would find the safe harbor of salvation in the Orthodox Church. Macarius left Rome secretly, and set out for Russia without money, and wearing an old garment. many sufferings on his journey, he arrived in Novgorod, where he rejoiced to see so many churches and monasteries. of these monasteries had been founded three centuries before by his fellow countryman, Saint Anthony the Roman (August 3). Macarius came to the banks of the River Svir, Saint Alexander of Svir (April 17 and August 30) had founded the monastery of the Holy Trinity. Alexander received Macarius into the Orthodox Church and tonsured him as a monk. however longed for the solitary life. moved to an island on the River Lezna, forty-five miles from Novgorod, where he engaged in ascetical struggles and unceasing prayer. winters were very cold, and the summers were hot and humid. marshy area was also a breeding ground for mosquitos, which tormented the saint. Macarius survived on berries, roots, and herbs. Sometimes bears would come to him for food, and they allowed him to pet them. a great lamp of the spiritual life could not remain hidden for long. rainy night someone knocked on his door and asked him to open it. Several people, who seemed to be hunters, entered his cell. Astonished by his appearance, and the divine light shining from his face, the men asked for his blessing. They told him they had come to the forest to hunt, and only by the prayers of the saint did God permit them to find him. “It is not my sinful prayers,” he told them, “but the grace of God which led you here.” feeding them, he spoke and prayed with them, then showed them the way out of the marsh. Macarius was concerned that his peace would be disturbed, now that his dwelling place was known. His fears were justified, because many people sought him out to ask for his advice and prayers. holy ascetic decided to move even farther into the wilderness, choosing an elevated place on the left bank of the Lezna. Even here, however, he was not able to conceal himself for very long. a pillar of fire would rise up into the sky at night above his place of refuge. the day, the grace of God was made manifest by a fragrant cloud of smoke. by these signs, the local inhabitants of the region were able to find him once more. of his visitors begged Saint Macarius to permit them to live near him and to be guided by his counsels. that this was the Lord’s will, he did not refuse them. blessed them to build cells, and this was the foundation of his monastery. 1540, they built a wooden church dedicated to the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos. Saint Macarius was ordained to the holy priesthood by Bishop Macarius of Novgorod, who later became Metropolitan of All Russia. The hierarch also appointed Saint Macarius as igumen of the monastery. Macarius was an example to the others, and was given the gifts of clairvoyance and wonderworking from God. wore himself out with his labors and vigils, encouraging others not to become faint-hearted in their own struggles. several years, he entrusted the monastery to one of his disciples, and returned to the island where he had first lived. he fell asleep in the Lord on August 15, 1550. His disciples buried him outside on the left side of the Dormition church which he had founded. Hermitage of Saint Macarius was never a prosperous monastery with many monks, it was distinguished by the high level of spiritual life. In the seventeenth century, many of the monasteries near Novgorod were plundered by Swedish invaders. Hermitage of Saint Macarius was also burned in 1615, and some of the monks were put to the sword. the eighteenth century, the monastery had become a dependency of the Saint Alexander Nevsky Lavra in Saint Petersburg. Empress Catherine closed it in 1764, just as she had closed other monasteries, it was designated as a parish church. pilgrims still came to venerate the saint’s relics and to celebrate his Feast Day, the buildings soon fell into ruin. the mid-nineteenth century, some benefactors restored the two churches and the miraculous healing spring which the saint himself had dug. this time an old priest was living there, and he celebrated the church services until his death. 1894, the monastery began to function once more under the noted missionary Hieromonk Arsenius, who introduced the Athonite Typikon. monastery was destroyed by the Soviets in 1932. Macarius the Roman is commemorated on August 15 (the date of his repose), and also on January 19 (his nameday).

Belgium, 1491-1528, ALBRECHT DUœRER of Nuremberg, painter, printmaker, woodcuts, writer, theorist
Germany, , ALBRECHT DUœRER of Nuremberg (Rhein-Maine Danube Canal 2) Albrecht Durer, painter, printmaker, woodcuts, writer, theorist, principles of math, perspective, ideal proportions, important figure of Northern Renaissance; Nuremberg; Albrecht Durer of ALBRECHT DUœRER, 1528, MATTHIAS GRUœNEWALD, 1529, LUCAS CRANACH the ELDER, 1553,ARTISTS, 5 August; Durer (May 21, 1471 - April 6, 1528) was a German painter, printmaker and theorist from Nuremberg. prints established his reputation across Europe when he was still in his twenties, he has been conventionally regarded as the greatest artist of the Renaissance in Northern Europe ever since. well-known works include the Apocalypse woodcuts, Knight, Death, and the Devil (1513), Saint Jerome in his Study (1514) and Melencolia I (1514), which has been the subject of extensive analysis and interpretation. watercolors mark him as one of the first European landscape artists, while his ambitious woodcuts revolutionized the potential of that medium. ürer's introduction of classical motifs into Northern art, through his knowledge of Italian artists and German humanists, have secured his reputation as one of the most important figures of the Northern Renaissance. is reinforced by his theoretical treatise which involve principles of mathematics, perspective and ideal proportions. (More at Wikipedia)

Belgium, 1492-1553, Lucas Cranch the elder, protestant, painter, printmaker, woodcut, engraving, portraits
Saxony; Lucas Cranach of ALBRECHT DuœRER, 1528, MATTHIAS GRuœNEWALD, 1529, LUCAS CRANACH the ELDER, 1553,ARTISTS, 5 August; Cranach the Elder, 4 October 1472 - 16 October 1553) was a German Renaissance painter and printmaker in woodcut and engraving. He was court painter to the Electors of Saxony for most of his career, and is best known for his portraits, both of German princes and those of the leaders of the Protestant Reformation, whose cause he embraced with enthusiasm, becoming a close friend of Martin Luther. He also painted religious subjects, first in the Catholic tradition, and later trying to find new ways of conveying Lutheran religious concerns in art. He continued throughout his career to paint nude subjects drawn from mythology and religion. He had a large workshop and many works exist in different versions; his son Lucas Cranach the Younger, and others, continued to produce versions of his father's works for decades after his death. (More at Wikipedia) NIKOLAUS LUDWIG von ZINZENDORF, PROPHETIC WITNESS, 1760, Commemorated May 10;

Belgium, 1493-1508, HRE Emperor, None
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1437-1493, Frederick III Holy Roman Emperor; III (21 September 1415 - 19 August 1493) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1452 until his death. was the first emperor of the House of Habsburg, and the fourth member of the House of Habsburg to be elected King of Germany after Rudolf I of Germany, Albert I in the 13th century and his predecessor Albert II of Germany. He was the penultimate emperor to be crowned by the Pope, and the last to be crowned in Rome. to his imperial coronation, he was duke of the Inner Austrian lands of Styria, Carinthia and Carniola from 1424, and also acted as regent over the Duchy of Austria (as Frederick V) from 1439. He was elected and crowned King of Germany (as Frederick IV) in 1440.[1] He was the longest-reigning German monarch when in 1493, after ruling his domains for more than 53 years, he was succeeded by his son Maximilian I. his reign, Frederick concentrated on re-uniting the Habsburg "hereditary lands" of Austria and took a lesser interest in Imperial affairs. Nevertheless, by his dynastic entitlement to Hungary as well as by the Burgundian inheritance, he laid the foundations for the later Habsburg Empire. as "Arch-Sleepyhead of the Holy Roman Empire" (German: Erzschlafmütze) during his lifetime,[2] he is today increasingly seen as an effective ruler. - THOMAS A KEMPIS, PRIEST, MONK, AND WRITER (24 JULY 1471) ; Lucas Cranach of ALBRECHT DEÂœRER, 1528, MATTHIAS GREÂœNEWALD, 1529, LUCAS CRANACH the ELDER, 1553,ARTISTS, 5 August; Matthias Grunewald of ALBRECHT DEÂœRER, 1528, MATTHIAS GREÂœNEWALD, 1529, LUCAS CRANACH the ELDER, 1553, ARTISTS, 5 August ; Venerable Serapion of Spaso-Eleazar Monastery, Pskov, Commemorated September 7 ; Venerable Hilarion the Abbot of Gdov and Pskov Lake, Commemorated on October 21; St Bassian of Uglich, Commemorated on February 12; Venerable Hilarion of Pskov, Lake Gdov, Commemorated on March 28; Venerable Isidore the Fool-For-Christ and Wonderworker of Rostov, Commemorated on May 14;

Belgium, 1493-1543, Polish Renaissance Man, Nicolaus Copernicus
Polish Renaissance Man, 1493-1543, Nicolaus Copernicus; Icon of the Mother of God of Vilnius, Commemorated on April 14; Nicholas Copernicus of NICHOLAS COPERNICUS and JOHANNES KEPLER, ASTRONOMERS, 1543 & 1630, Commemorated May 23;

Belgium, 1494-1566, BARTOLOME DE LOS CASAS, tears of t Indians, great story history spanish over Aztecs w indian help
Spain and Portugal, 1494-1566, BARTOLOME DE LOS CASAS, MISSIONARY PRIEST, DEFENDER OF THE OPPRESSED, from Seville, Spain (Guadalquivir River 2), tears of the Indians, social justice pioneer, great story history spanish over Aztecs w indian help; Seville; BARTOLOME DE LOS CASAS, MISSIONARY PRIEST, DEFENDER OF THE OPPRESSED, 1566, Commemorated July 18 ; de Las Casas was born in Seville, Spain, in 1474. 1502 he went to Cuba, and for his military services there was given an Encomienda, an estate that included the services of the Indians living on it. about 1513 he was ordained priest (probably the first ordination in the Americas), in 1514 he renounced all claim on his Indian serfs. During the following seven years he made several voyages to Spain to find support for a series of new towns in which Spaniard and Indian would live together in peace and equality. 1523 he became a Dominican friar and disappeared for a time from public controversy. 1540 he returned to Spain and was a force behind the passage in 1542 of laws prohibiting Indian slavery and safeguarding the rights of the Indians. was made Bishop of Chiapas in Guatemala, and returned to the Americas in 1544 to implement the new laws, but he met considerable resistance, in 1547 he returned to Spain, where he devoted the rest of his life to speaking and writing on behalf of the Indians. is chiefly remembered for his Brief Report On the Destruction of the Indies (or Tears of the Indians), a fervid and perhaps exaggerated account of the atrocities of the Spanish conquerors against the Indians. book was widely read and widely translated, and the English version was used to stir up English feeling against the Spanish as a cruel race whom England ought to beware of, and whose colonies in the Americas would be better off in English Las Casas is widely admired as an early pioneer of social justice, and widely denounced as an irresponsible pamphleteer and spreader of slanders. died in Madrid on 17 July (or perhaps 31 July) 1566, and is remembered as a national hero in Cuba and Nicaragua. An extract from Tears of the Indians follows. Christ wanted his gospel to be preached with enticements, Gentleness, and all meekness, and pagans to be led to the truth not by armed forces but by holy examples, Christian conduct, and the word of God, so that no opportunity would be offered for blaspheming the sacred name or hating the true religion because of the conduct of the preachers. For this is nothing else than making the coming and passion of Christ useless, as long as the truth of the gospel is hated before it is either understood or heard, or as long as innumerable human beings are slaughtered in a war waged on the pretext of preaching the gospel and spreading religion. Las Casas we may remember Bartolomeo de Olmedo, priest and friar of Mercy, who was chaplain of Cortez's expedition to Mexico City, and who appears in the records of that expedition as a moderating force, denouncing atrocities and conquest, talking Cortez out of forcibly destroying idol temples, telling him instead to set the Indians an example of Christian love, and wait for them to destroy the idols by their own decision. readers will remember him from Samuel Shellabarger's historical novel, Captain From Castille.) to the Britannica article on pre-Columbian American cultures (see vol. 26 p. 25 of the 15th edition), the clergy accompanying the Spanish conquistadors were consistently more disposed than the commanders to respect the native civilizations and undertake to preserve their records, and whatever aspects of native culture were not clearly inconsistent with Christianity. the beginning, the missionary priests in Spanish America showed concern for the welfare of the Indians. On Christmas Day in 1511, in Hispaniola, the Dominican Antonio de Montesimos preached, saying, "By what right or justice do you keep the Indians in such horrible servitude? Are they not men? Have they not rational souls? Are you not bound to love them as you love yourselves?" government policy was to establish towns for the Indians, and these were normally built in connection with mission posts. The Indians seem to have taken to the mission civilization with enthusiasm. In particular, they were great lovers of music, and found plainchant much to their taste. first Bishop of Mexico, Juan de Zumarraga, said, "I find that more are converted by music than by any other method." were also impressed by the asceticism of the friars. A prominent idea in the native religions had been that holiness was associated with bearing pain in the service of the gods, and when they met missionaries like the Franciscan Antonio de Roa, who went barefoot and slept on boards, wore only a coarse sackcloth robe, ate no meat or wine, and scourged himself every time he saw a crucifix, they concluded that he must be a man of God, and listened eagerly to his preaching. seems clear that the Indians for the most part regarded the missionaries as their benefactors, and gave them a loyalty which was not simply fear of the secular authority that backed them up. This is shown when the secular authority did not back them. 1769, when the Spanish Crown adopted an anti-Jesuit policy, the Jesuits were deported from Mexico. Mobs of angry Indians attempted to break into the barracks where they were held, and a large military escort was necessary to conduct them to Vera Cruz and the waiting ships. in 1799, in Pueblo, a large Indian crowd attacked a jail in which a priest had been imprisoned. about three centuries, from the early 1500's to the early 1800's, the people of Mexico were obedient to the Spanish Crown because their clergy were. when the Crown broke with the clergy in the early 1800's the priests began to preach independence, and the people followed their lead, and Mexico and the rest of Spanish America became independent. great many converts were brought in by the Cloak of Guadalupe. An Indian Christian reported that the Virgin Mary had appeared to him and sent him to see the bishop; and as a sign that the appearance was genuine, she filled his cloak with roses although it was winter, and printed on the cloak a picture of herself, portrayed in the Indian style of art, as a woman treading a serpent, and with some details that made no particular sense to a European. Indians came to see the cloak (which is still on display in the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City), and were converted by the sight. seems that some of the details are significant in terms of American Indian culture, and were understood by the Indians to mean that Christianity is the fulfilment of their prophecies and expectations. persons today think of the Indians of Mexico as a free and happy people who were conquered and enslaved by the Spanish. must be remembered that before the coming of the Europeans, the Aztecs with their capital at what is now Mexico City had conquered the surrounding tribes for hundreds of miles in all directions, and required of them every year a tribute of young men and women to be sacrificed in the temples at Mexico City. subjugated tribes did not like this, and gladly assisted Cortes in his campaign against the Aztecs. when he suffered temporary defeats, the loyalty of his Indian auxiliaries never wavered, and his rule, once he had established himself, was considered far less harsh than that of the Aztecs had been. The Britannica article on Cortes speaks of "his acceptance by the Indians and his popularity as a relatively benign ruler." the European conquest of the Americas is being deplored, the accompanying high death rate among the natives is often mentioned. ought to be remembered that most of these deaths were due to smallpox. The disease was brought to the Americas by one sick sailor, and triggered a series of major epidemics. The Indians had no previous exposure to it and almost no resistance to it, and most cases were fatal. Moreover, the Indians habitually treated their sick by baths, and the water was used by many bathers. One bather with an open sore was enough to infect all who shared the same bath. two populations long separated come into significant contact, each of them is at risk from diseases against which they are defenseless. The smallpox epidemic would have run about the same course if the ships of Columbus had been loaded with social workers and Peace Corps volunteers. can denounce the Europeans for the smallpox epidemic only by being prepared to say that there ought never to be contact between two populations that have previously been isolated from each other. — by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1500-1599, 16th Centory Folder, HRE, Luther's 95 Theses, Hapsburg Empire,

Belgium, 1503-1546, MARTIN LUTHER, Martin's catechism, council of trent- sale of indulgences&church offices, clergy education
Germany, 1503-1546, MARTIN LUTHER, Erfurt, Germany (Ilm River 3), Church spiritual low, church offices sold, Christian doctrine not taught, no seminaries, only monastic schools for monks, Martin's catechism, common tongue scriptures, prodigious writer, book every 2 wks, real problems, resentment , everyone agreed on free gift of salvation, council of trent- financial abuses, sale of indulgences & church offices, clergy education; City of Erfurt; MARTIN LUTHER, EDUCATOR, TRANSLATOR (18 FEB 1546); once heard a priest say: "Sometimes in a sermon, I have occasion to quote some comment by Martin Luther which bears on the point I want to make. But there are those in my congregation who would wonder what I was doing quoting a notorious Protestant. So I simply refer to him as Brother Martin of Erfurt, and they smile and nod. He said a lot of remarkably good things." LutherBrother Martin of Erfurt, born in 1483 of German peasant stock, was a monk (more exactly, a regular canon) of the Order of Saint Augustine, and a Doctor of Theology. his day, the Church was at a spiritual low. offices were openly sold to the highest bidder, not nearly enough was being done to combat the notion that forgiveness of sins was likewise for sale. many Christians, both clergy and laity, were most inadequately instructed in Christian doctrine. as it seems to us today, there were then no seminaries for the education of the clergy. were monastic schools, but they concentrated on the education of their own monks. priests, ordinarily having no monastic background, were in need of instruction themselves, and in no way prepared to instruct their congregations. Brother Martin set out to remedy this. wrote a simple catechism for the instruction of the laity which is still in use today, is his translation of the Scriptures into the common tongue. energy as a writer was prodigious. From 1517, when he first began to write for the public, until his death, he wrote on the average one book a fortnight. Today, his criticisms of the laxness and frequent abuses of his day are generally recognized on all sides as a response to very real problems. was perhaps inevitable, however, that they should arouse resentment in his own day (Brother Martin, and for that matter many of his opponents, had controversial manners that my high school speech teacher and debate coach would never have tolerated!), and he spent much of his life in conflict with the ecclesiastical authorities. disputes were complicated by extraneous political considerations on both sides, and, as one of his admirers has observed, each side was at its best when proclaiming what the other side, well considered and in a cool hour, did not really deny. Martin, for example, was most ardent in maintaining that salvation was a free gift of God, and that all attempts to earn or deserve it are worse than useless. But he was not alone in holding this. When his followers met in 1540 with Cardinal Contarini, the Papal delegate, in an effort to arrive at an understanding, there was complete agreement on this point. Cardinal, by a study of the Epistle to the Romans, had arrived in 1511 at the same position as Brother Martin in 1517. So had Cardinal Pole, the Archbishop of Canterbury (who had, ironically, been appointed to combat Brother Martin's influence). So had the Archbishop of Cologne, and so had many other highly placed Church officials. In Brother Martin's own judgement, his greatest achievement was his catechism, by the use of which all Christians without exception might be instructed in at least the rudiments of the Faith. of his admirers, however, would insist that his greatest achievement was the Council of Trent, which he did not live to see, but which he was arguably the greatest single factor in bringing about. the Council's doctrinal pronouncements were not all that Brother Martin would have wished, it did take very much to heart his strictures on financial abuses, and undertook considerable reforms in those areas banned the sale of indulgences and of church offices, and took steps to provide for the systematic education of the clergy. it another way, if I were arguing with an adherent of the Pope, and I wanted to point out to him that many Popes have been, even by ordinary grading-on-a-curve standards, wicked men, cynically exploiting their office for personal gain, I would have no difficulty in finding examples from the three centuries immediately preceding Brother Martin and the Council of Trent. I were restricted to the centuries afterward, I should have more of a problem. And this is, under God, due in some measure to Brother Martin's making himself a nuisance. Thanks be to God for an occasional nuisance at the right time and place. Behold, Lord An empty vessel that needs to be filled. My Lord, fill it I am weak in the faith; Strengthen me. I am cold in love; Warm me and make me fervent, That my love may go out to my neighbor... O Lord, help me. Strengthen my faith and trust in you... With me, there is an abundance of sin; In You is the fullness of righteousness. Therefore I will remain with You, Whom I can receive, But to Whom I may not give. Martin Luther by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1508-1519, HRE Emperor, Maximilian I, second Hapsbgh, married Burgendy, Jews cancelled, lost Swis&Italy
Holy Roman Emperor, 1486-1519, Maximilian I ; I (22 March 1459 – 12 January 1519) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1508 until his death. was never crowned by the Pope, as the journey to Rome was always too risky. He was instead proclaimed emperor elect by Pope Julius II at Trent, thus breaking the long tradition of requiring a Papal coronation for the adoption of the Imperial title. was the son of Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor, and Eleanor of Portugal. He ruled jointly with his father for the last ten years of the latter's reign, from c. 1483 until his father's death in 1493. expanded the influence of the House of Habsburg through war and his marriage in 1477 to Mary of Burgundy, the heiress to the Duchy of Burgundy, though he also lost his family's original lands in today's Switzerland to the Swiss Confederacy. marriage of his son Philip the Handsome to eventual queen Joanna of Castile in 1498, Maximilian helped to establish the Habsburg dynasty in Spain, which allowed his grandson Charles to hold the thrones of both Castile and Aragon.[2] 1 Background and childhood 2 Reign in Burgundy and the Netherlands 3 Reign in the Holy Roman Empire 3.1 Peaceful Recapture of Austria 3.2 Italian and Swiss wars 3.3 Banning of Jewish literature and expulsion of Jews 3.4 Reforms 4 Tu felix Austria nube 5 Succession 6 Death and legacy 7 Ancestry 8 Official style 8.1 Chivalric order 9 Marriages and offspring 10 Triumphal woodcuts 11 See also 12 References 13 Bibliography 14 External links and childhood[edit] III and Eleanor of Portugal. was born at Wiener Neustadt on 22 March 1459. His father, Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor, named him for an obscure saint, Maximilian of Tebessa, who Frederick believed had once warned him of imminent peril in a dream. his infancy, he and his parents were besieged in Vienna by Albert of Austria. One source relates that, during the siege's bleakest days, the young prince wandered about the castle garrison, begging the servants and men-at-arms for bits of bread.[3] The young prince was an excellent hunter, his favorite hobby was hunting for birds as a horse archer. the time, the dukes of Burgundy, a cadet branch of the French royal family, with their sophisticated nobility and court culture, were the rulers of substantial territories on the eastern and northern boundaries of France. The reigning duke, Charles the Bold, was the chief political opponent of Maximilian's father Frederick III. Frederick was concerned about Burgundy's expansive tendencies on the western border of his Holy Roman Empire, and, to forestall military conflict, he attempted to secure the marriage of Charles' only daughter, Mary of Burgundy, to his son Maximilian. After the Siege of Neuss (1474–75), he was successful. The wedding between Maximilian and Mary took place on 19 August 1477.[4] in Burgundy and the Netherlands[edit] hommage ceremony of the estates to the emperor (depiction from the Liber missarum of Margaret of Austria, 1515) gold-and-silver coin featuring the bust of a crowned man in armour, holding a sceptre and a sword. The bust is surrounded with the text 'Maximilianus Dei Gra Rex & Imper Augustus'. A gold-and-silver coin featuring five coats of arms, three crowned, and the chain of the Order of the Golden Fleece. The coin is surrounded by text. coin with the Burgundian Order of the Golden Fleece wife had inherited the large Burgundian domains in France and the Low Countries upon her father's death in the Battle of Nancy on 5 January 1477. Already before his coronation as the King of the Romans in 1486, Maximilian decided to secure this distant and extensive Burgundian inheritance to his family, the House of Habsburg, at all costs.[5] Duchy of Burgundy was also claimed by the French crown under Salic Law,[6] with Louis XI of France vigorously contesting the Habsburg claim to the Burgundian inheritance by means of military force. Maximilian undertook the defence of his wife's dominions from an attack by Louis XI and defeated the French forces at Guinegate, the modern Enguinegatte, on 7 August 1479.[7] and Mary's wedding contract stipulated that their children would succeed them but that the couple could not be each other's heirs. Mary tried to bypass this rule with a promise to transfer territories as a gift in case of her death, but her plans were confounded. After Mary's death in a riding accident on 27 March 1482 near the Wijnendale Castle, Maximilian's aim was now to secure the inheritance to his and Mary's son, Philip the Handsome.[5] of the Netherlander provinces were hostile to Maximilian, and, in 1482, they signed a treaty with Louis XI in Arras that forced Maximilian to give up Franche-Comté and Artois to the French crown.[6] They openly rebelled twice in the period 1482–1492, attempting to regain the autonomy they had enjoined under Mary. Flemish rebels managed to capture Philip and even Maximilian himself, but they were defeated when Frederick III intervened.[8][9] Maximilian continued to govern Mary's remaining inheritance in the name of Philip the Handsome. After the regency ended, Maximilian and Charles VIII of France exchanged these two territories for Burgundy and Picardy in the Treaty of Senlis (1493). Thus a large part of the Netherlands (known as the Seventeen Provinces) stayed in the Habsburg patrimony.[6] in the Holy Roman Empire[edit] Recapture of Austria[edit] was elected King of the Romans on 16 February 1486 in Frankfurt-am-Main at his father's initiative and crowned on 9 April 1486 in Aachen. Much of Austria was under Hungarian rule, as a result of the Austrian-Hungarian War (1477-1488). After the death of king Matthias Corvinus of Hungary, the Habsburgs were able to occupy the Austrian territories without military conflict. Maximilian entered Vienna without siege in 1490. The peaceful Habsburg annexation of Austrian territories was possible after Maximilian and the newly elected Hungarian King Vladislaus II signed the peace treaty of Pressburg. Maximilian became ruler of the Holy Roman Empire upon the death of his father in 1493. and Swiss wars[edit] of Maximilian I, c. 1490–95, by Lorenz Helmschmid, Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Golden Roof" residence in Innsbruck, Tyrol the Treaty of Senlis had resolved French differences with the Holy Roman Empire, King Louis XII of France had secured borders in the north and turned his attention to Italy, where he made claims for the Duchy of Milan. In 1499/1500 he conquered it and drove the Sforza regent Lodovico il Moro into exile.[10] This brought him into a potential conflict with Maximilian, who on 16 March 1494 had married Bianca Maria Sforza, a daughter of Galeazzo Maria Sforza, duke of Milan.[6][10] However, Maximilian was unable to hinder the French from taking over Milan.[10] The prolonged Italian Wars resulted[6] in Maximilian joining the Holy League to counter the French. In 1513, with Henry VIII of England, Maximilian won an important victory at the battle of the Spurs against the French, stopping their advance in northern France. His campaigns in Italy were not as successful, and his progress there was quickly checked. situation in Italy was not the only problem Maximilian had at the time. The Swiss won a decisive victory against the Empire in the Battle of Dornach on 22 July 1499. Maximilian had no choice but to agree to a peace treaty signed on 22 September 1499 in Basel that granted the Swiss Confederacy independence from the Holy Roman Empire. addition, the County of Tyrol and Duchy of Bavaria went to war in the late 15th century. Bavaria demanded money from Tyrol that had been loaned on the collateral of Tyrolean lands. In 1490, the two nations demanded that Maximilian I step in to mediate the dispute. In response, he assumed control of Tyrol and its debt. Because Tyrol had no law code at this time, the nobility freely expropriated money from the populace, which caused the royal palace in Innsbruck to fester with corruption. After taking control, Maximilian instituted immediate financial reform. In order to symbolize his new wealth and power, he built the Golden Roof, a canopy overlooking the town center of Innsbruck, from which to watch the festivities celebrating his assumption of rule over Tyrol. The canopy is made entirely from golden shingles. Gaining theoretical control of Tyrol for the Habsburgs was of strategic importance because it linked the Swiss Confederacy to the Habsburg-controlled Austrian lands, which facilitated some imperial geographic continuity. of Jewish literature and expulsion of Jews[edit] 1496, Maximilian issued a decree which expelled all Jews from Styria and Wiener Neustadt.[11] Similarly, in 1509 he passed the "Imperial Confiscation Mandate" which ordered the destruction of all Jewish literature apart from the Bible.[12] However he still conducted financial business with Jews like Abraham of Bohemia. article: Imperial Reform personally led his troops at the battle of Wenzenbach in 1504. the Holy Roman Empire, Maximilian faced pressure from local rulers who believed that the King's continued wars with the French to increase the power of his own house were not in their best interests. There was also a consensus that deep reforms were needed to preserve the unity of the Empire.[13] The reforms, which had been delayed for a long time, were launched in the 1495 Reichstag at Worms. A new organ was introduced, the Reichskammergericht, that was to be largely independent from the Emperor. A new tax was launched to finance it, the Gemeine Pfennig, though its collection was never fully successful.[13] The local rulers wanted more independence from the Emperor and a strengthening of their own territorial rule. This led to Maximilian agreeing to establish an organ called the Reichsregiment, which met in Nuremberg and consisted of the deputies of the Emperor, local rulers, commoners, and the prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire. The new organ proved politically weak, and its power returned to Maximilian in 1502.[10] to the difficult external and internal situation he faced, Maximilian also felt it necessary to introduce reforms in the historic territories of the House of Habsburg in order to finance his army. Using Burgundian institutions as a model, he attempted to create a unified state. This was not very successful, but one of the lasting results was the creation of three different subdivisions of the Austrian lands: Lower Austria, Upper Austria, and Vorderösterreich.[10] was always troubled by financial shortcomings; his income never seemed to be enough to sustain his large-scale goals and policies. For this reason he was forced to take substantial credits from Upper German banker families, especially from the Baumgarten, Fugger and Welser families. Jörg Baumgarten even served as Maximilian's financial advisor. The Fuggers, who dominated the copper and silver mining business in Tyrol, provided a credit of almost 1 million gulden for the purpose of bribing the prince-electors to choose Maximilian's grandson Charles V as the new Emperor. At the end of Maximilian's rule, the Habsburgs' mountain of debt totalled six million gulden, corresponding to a decade's worth of tax revenues from their inherited lands. It took until the end of the 16th century to repay this debt. 1508, Maximilian, with the assent of Pope Julius II, took the title Erwählter Römischer Kaiser ("Elected Roman Emperor"), thus ending the centuries-old custom that the Holy Roman Emperor had to be crowned by the Pope. felix Austria nube[edit] Weisskunig: Maximilian on horseback in besieged town part of the Treaty of Arras, Maximilian betrothed his three-year-old daughter Margaret to the Dauphin of France (later Charles VIII), son of his adversary Louis XI. Under the terms of Margaret's betrothal, she was sent to Louis to be brought up under his guardianship. Despite Louis's death in 1483, shortly after Margaret arrived in France, she remained at the French court. The Dauphin, now Charles VIII, was still a minor, and his regent until 1491 was his sister Anne.[14][15] shortly after signing the Treaty of Le Verger, Francis II, Duke of Brittany, left his realm to his daughter Anne. In her search of alliances to protect her domain from neighboring interests, she betrothed Maximilian I in 1490. About a year later, they married by proxy.[16][17][18] Charles and his sister wanted her inheritance for France. So, when the former came of age in 1491, and taking advantage of Maximilian and his father's interest in the succession of their adversary Mathias Corvinus, King of Hungary,[19] Charles repudiated his betrothal to Margaret, invaded Brittany, forced Anne of Brittany to repudiate her unconsummated marriage to Maximilian, and married Anne of Brittany himself.[20][21][22] then remained in France as a hostage of sorts until 1493, when she was finally returned to her father with the signing of the Treaty of Senlis.[23][24] the same year, as the hostilities of the lengthy Italian Wars with France were in preparation,[25] Maximilian contracted another marriage for himself, this time to Bianca Maria Sforza, daughter of Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan, with the intercession of his brother, Ludovico Sforza,[26][27][28][29] then regent of the duchy after the former's death.[30] talking to German knights (depiction from the contemporary Weisskunig) later, in order to reduce the growing pressures on the Empire brought about by treaties between the rulers of France, Poland, Hungary, Bohemia, and Russia, as well as to secure Bohemia and Hungary for the Habsburgs, Maximilian met with the Jagiellonian kings Ladislaus II of Hungary and Bohemia and Sigismund I of Poland at the First Congress of Vienna in 1515. There they arranged for Maximilian's granddaughter Mary to marry Louis, the son of Ladislaus, and for Anne (the sister of Louis) to marry Maximilian's grandson Ferdinand (both grandchildren being the children of Philip the Handsome, Maximilian's son, and Joanna of Castile).[31][32] The marriages arranged there brought Habsburg kingship over Hungary and Bohemia in 1526.[33][34] Both Anne and Louis were adopted by Maximilian following the death of Ladislaus.[citation needed] Maximilian through his own marriages and those of his descendants (attempted unsuccessfully and successfully alike) sought, as was current practice for dynastic states at the time, to extend his sphere of influence.[34] The marriages he arranged for both of his children more successfully fulfilled the specific goal of thwarting French interests, and after the turn of the sixteenth century, his matchmaking focused on his grandchildren, for whom he looked away from France towards the east.[34][35] These political marriages were summed up in the following Latin elegiac couplet: Bella gerant aliÄ«, tÅ« fÄ“lix Austria nÅ«be/ Nam quae Mars aliÄ«s, dat tibi regna Venus, "Let others wage war, but thou, O happy Austria, marry; for those kingdoms which Mars gives to others, Venus gives to thee."[36] policies in Italy had been unsuccessful, and after 1517 Venice reconquered the last pieces of their territory. began to focus entirely on the question of his succession. His goal was to secure the throne for a member of his house and prevent Francis I of France from gaining the throne; the resulting "election campaign" was unprecedented due to the massive use of bribery.[37] The Fugger family provided Maximilian a credit of one million gulden, which was used to bribe the prince-electors.[38] However, the bribery claims have been challenged.[39] At first, this policy seemed successful, and Maximilian managed to secure the votes from Mainz, Cologne, Brandenburg and Bohemia for his grandson Charles V. The death of Maximilian in 1519 seemed to put the succession at risk, but in a few months the election of Charles V was secured.[10] and legacy[edit] cenotaph, Hofkirche, Innsbruck 1501, Maximilian fell from his horse and badly injured his leg, causing him pain for the rest of his life. Some historians have suggested that Maximilian was "morbidly" depressed: from 1514, he travelled everywhere with his coffin.[40] Maximilian died in Wels, Upper Austria, and was succeeded as Emperor by his grandson Charles V, his son Philip the Handsome having died in 1506. For penitential reasons, Maximilian gave very specific instructions for the treatment of his body after death. He wanted his hair to be cut off and his teeth knocked out, and the body was to be whipped and covered with lime and ash, wrapped in linen, and "publicly displayed to show the perishableness of all earthly glory".[41] Although he is buried in the Castle Chapel at Wiener Neustadt, an extremely elaborate cenotaph tomb for Maximilian is in the Hofkirche, Innsbruck, where the tomb is surrounded by statues of heroes from the past.[42] Much of the work was done in his lifetime, but it was not completed until decades later.[citation needed] was a keen supporter of the arts and sciences, and he surrounded himself with scholars such as Joachim Vadian and Andreas Stoberl (Stiborius), promoting them to important court posts. Many of them were commissioned to assist him complete a series of projects, in different art forms, intended to glorify for posterity his life and deeds and those of his Habsburg ancestors.[43][44] He referred to these projects as Gedechtnus ("memorial"),[44][45] which included a series of stylised autobiographical works: the epic poems Theuerdank and Freydal, and the chivalric novel Weisskunig, both published in editions lavishly illustrated with woodcuts.[43] In this vein, he commissioned a series of three monumental woodblock prints: The Triumphal Arch (1512–18, 192 woodcut panels, 295 cm wide and 357 cm high – approximately 9'8" by 11'8½"); and a Triumphal Procession (1516–18, 137 woodcut panels, 54 m long), which is led by a Large Triumphal Carriage (1522, 8 woodcut panels, 1½' high and 8' long), created by artists including Albrecht Dürer, Albrecht Altdorfer and Hans Burgkmair.[46][47] had a great passion for armour, not only as equipment for battle or tournaments, but as an art form. The style of armour that became popular during the second half of his reign featured elaborate fluting and metalworking, and became known as Maximilian armour. It emphasized the details in the shaping of the metal itself, rather than the etched or gilded designs popular in the Milanese style. Maximilian also gave a bizarre jousting helmet as a gift to King Henry VIII – the helmet's visor features a human face, with eyes, nose and a grinning mouth, and was modelled after the appearance of Maximilian himself.[48] It also sports a pair of curled ram's horns, brass spectacles, and even etched beard stubble.[48] had appointed his daughter Margaret as both Regent of the Netherlands and the guardian and educator of his grandsons Charles and Ferdinand (their father, Philip, having predeceased Maximilian), and she fulfilled this task well. Through wars and marriages he extended the Habsburg influence in every direction: to the Netherlands, Spain, Bohemia, Hungary, Poland, and Italy. This influence lasted for centuries and shaped much of European history. The Habsburg Empire survived as the Austro-Hungarian Empire until it was dissolved 3 November 1918 – 399 years 11 months and 9 days after the passing of Maximilian. Albrecht Durer of ALBRECHT DUÂœRER, 1528, MATTHIAS GRUÂœNEWALD, 1529, LUCAS CRANACH the ELDER, 1553,ARTISTS, 5 August; Lucas Cranach of ALBRECHT DUÂœRER, 1528, MATTHIAS GRUÂœNEWALD, 1529, LUCAS CRANACH the ELDER, 1553,ARTISTS, 5 August; Matthias Grunewald of ALBRECHT DUÂœRER, 1528, MATTHIAS GRUÂœNEWALD, 1529, LUCAS CRANACH the ELDER, 1553, ARTISTS, 5 August ; St Eutychius of Nursia, Commemorated on August 23; Hieromartyr Isidore and 72 Others at Yuriev, Estonia, Commemorated on January 8; Venerable Macarius the Roman of Novgorod, Commemorated on January 19 ; St Bassian of Uglich, Commemorated on February 12; MARTIN LUTHER, EDUCATOR, TRANSLATOR (18 FEB 1546) ; OLAVUS PETRI, Priest 19 April 1552, Laurentius Petri, Archbishop of Uppsala 1573, Commemorated April 19 ; JOHN CALVIN, THEOLOGIAN, 1564, Commemorated May 28;

Belgium, 1516-1556, Charles V, King of Spain, inherited Hapsburg d's, divided Spanish Austrian d's, Gold Silver inflation
Spanish King, 1516-1556. Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, Charles I of Spain ; V[a][b] (24 February 1500 - 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain (Castile and Aragon) from 1516 to 1556, and Lord of the Netherlands as titular Duke of Burgundy from 1506 to 1555. he was head of the rising House of Habsburg during the first half of the 16th century, his dominions in Europe included the Holy Roman Empire, extending from Germany to northern Italy with direct rule over the Austrian hereditary lands and the Burgundian Low Countries, and a unified Spain with its southern Italian kingdoms of Naples, Sicily, and Sardinia. Furthermore, his reign encompassed both the long-lasting Spanish and the short-lived German colonizations of the Americas. personal union of the European and American territories of Charles V was the first collection of realms labelled "the empire on which the Sun never sets".[1] was born in the County of Flanders to Philip the Handsome of the Austrian House of Habsburg (son of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor, and Mary of Burgundy) and Joanna of Castile of the Spanish House of Trastámara (daughter of Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon). The ultimate heir of his four grandparents, he inherited all of his family dominions at a young age. the death of Philip in 1506, he inherited the Burgundian Netherlands, originally held by his paternal grandmother Mary.[2] In 1516, he became co-monarch of Spain with his mother Joanna, and as such he was the first king of Spain to inherit the country as dynastically unified by the Catholic Monarchs, his maternal grandparents.[3] The Spanish possessions at his accession also included the Castilian West Indies and the Aragonese Kingdoms of Naples, Sicily and Sardinia. At the death of his paternal grandfather Maximilian in 1519, he inherited Austria and was elected to succeed him as Holy Roman Emperor. He adopted the Imperial name of Charles V as his main title, and styled himself as a new Charlemagne.[4] V revitalized the medieval concept of the universal monarchy and spent most of his life defending the integrity of the Holy Roman Empire from the Protestant Reformation, the expansion of the Ottoman Empire, and a series of wars with France.[5] no fixed capital city, he made 40 journeys, travelling from country to country; he spent a quarter of his reign on the road.[6] The imperial wars were fought by German Landsknechte, Spanish tercios, Burgundian knights, and Italian condottieri. V borrowed money from German and Italian bankers and, in order to repay such loans, he relied on the proto-capitalist economy of the Low Countries and on the flows of gold and especially silver from South America to Spain, which caused widespread inflation. ratified the Spanish conquest of the Aztec and Inca empires by the Spanish Conquistadores Hernán Cortés and Francisco Pizarro, as well as the establishment of Klein-Venedig by the German Welser family in search of the legendary El Dorado. order to consolidate power in his early reign, Charles suppressed two Spanish insurrections (Comuneros' Revolt and Brotherhoods' Revolt) and two German rebellions (Knights' Revolt and Great Peasants' Revolt). King in Germany, Charles sided with Pope Leo X and declared Martin Luther an outlaw at the Diet of Worms (1521).[7] same year Francis I of France, surrounded by the Habsburg possessions, started a conflict in Lombardy that lasted until the Battle of Pavia (1525) led to his temporary imprisonment. Protestant affair re-emerged in 1527 as Rome was sacked by an army of Charles's mutinous soldiers, largely of Lutheran faith. After his forces left the Papal States, Charles V defended Vienna from the Turks and obtained the coronation as King in Italy by Pope Clement VII. 1535, he annexed the vacant Duchy of Milan and captured Tunis. Nevertheless, the loss of Buda during the struggle for Hungary and the Algiers expedition in the early 40s frustrated his anti-Ottoman policies. Charles V had come to an agreement with Pope Paul III for the organisation of the Council of Trent (1545). The refusal of the Lutheran Schmalkaldic League to recognize the council's validity led to a war, won by Charles V with the imprisonment of the Protestant princes. However, Henry II of France offered new support to the Lutheran cause and strengthened a close alliance with the sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, the ruler of the Ottoman Empire since 1520. Charles V conceded the Peace of Augsburg and abandoned his multi-national project with a series of abdications in 1556 that divided his hereditary and imperial domains between the Spanish Habsburgs headed by his son Philip II of Spain and the Austrian Habsburgs headed by his brother Ferdinand, who was Archduke of Austria in Charles's name since 1521 and the designated successor as emperor since 1531.[8][9][10] The Duchy of Milan and the Habsburg Netherlands were left in personal union to the King of Spain, but remained part of the Holy Roman Empire. The two Habsburg dynasties remained allied until the extinction of the Spanish line in 1700. In 1557, Charles retired to the Monastery of Yuste in Extremadura and died there a year later. NIKOLAUS LUDWIG von ZINZENDORF, PROPHETIC WITNESS, 1760, Commemorated May 10; JOHN CALVIN, THEOLOGIAN, 1564, commemorated May 28;

Belgium, 1519-1556, HRE Emperor, Charles V, King Spain, from Ghent, Belgium, no fixed capital, travelled 40 times
Holy Roman Emperor, 1519-1556, Charles V from Ghent, Belgium; V[a][b] (24 February 1500 - 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain (Castile and Aragon) from 1516 to 1556, and Lord of the Netherlands as titular Duke of Burgundy from 1506 to 1555. he was head of the rising House of Habsburg during the first half of the 16th century, his dominions in Europe included the Holy Roman Empire, extending from Germany to northern Italy with direct rule over the Austrian hereditary lands and the Burgundian Low Countries, and a unified Spain with its southern Italian kingdoms of Naples, Sicily, and Sardinia. Furthermore, his reign encompassed both the long-lasting Spanish and the short-lived German colonizations of the Americas. personal union of the European and American territories of Charles V was the first collection of realms labelled "the empire on which the Sun never sets".[1] was born in the County of Flanders to Philip the Handsome of the Austrian House of Habsburg (son of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor, and Mary of Burgundy) and Joanna of Castile of the Spanish House of Trastámara (daughter of Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon). The ultimate heir of his four grandparents, he inherited all of his family dominions at a young age. the death of Philip in 1506, he inherited the Burgundian Netherlands, originally held by his paternal grandmother Mary.[2] In 1516, he became co-monarch of Spain with his mother Joanna, and as such he was the first king of Spain to inherit the country as dynastically unified by the Catholic Monarchs, his maternal grandparents.[3] The Spanish possessions at his accession also included the Castilian West Indies and the Aragonese Kingdoms of Naples, Sicily and Sardinia. At the death of his paternal grandfather Maximilian in 1519, he inherited Austria and was elected to succeed him as Holy Roman Emperor. He adopted the Imperial name of Charles V as his main title, and styled himself as a new Charlemagne.[4] V revitalized the medieval concept of the universal monarchy and spent most of his life defending the integrity of the Holy Roman Empire from the Protestant Reformation, the expansion of the Ottoman Empire, and a series of wars with France.[5] no fixed capital city, he made 40 journeys, travelling from country to country; he spent a quarter of his reign on the road.[6] The imperial wars were fought by German Landsknechte, Spanish tercios, Burgundian knights, and Italian condottieri. V borrowed money from German and Italian bankers and, in order to repay such loans, he relied on the proto-capitalist economy of the Low Countries and on the flows of gold and especially silver from South America to Spain, which caused widespread inflation. ratified the Spanish conquest of the Aztec and Inca empires by the Spanish Conquistadores Hernán Cortés and Francisco Pizarro, as well as the establishment of Klein-Venedig by the German Welser family in search of the legendary El Dorado. order to consolidate power in his early reign, Charles suppressed two Spanish insurrections (Comuneros' Revolt and Brotherhoods' Revolt) and two German rebellions (Knights' Revolt and Great Peasants' Revolt). King in Germany, Charles sided with Pope Leo X and declared Martin Luther an outlaw at the Diet of Worms (1521).[7] same year Francis I of France, surrounded by the Habsburg possessions, started a conflict in Lombardy that lasted until the Battle of Pavia (1525) led to his temporary imprisonment. Protestant affair re-emerged in 1527 as Rome was sacked by an army of Charles's mutinous soldiers, largely of Lutheran faith. After his forces left the Papal States, Charles V defended Vienna from the Turks and obtained the coronation as King in Italy by Pope Clement VII. 1535, he annexed the vacant Duchy of Milan and captured Tunis. Nevertheless, the loss of Buda during the struggle for Hungary and the Algiers expedition in the early 40s frustrated his anti-Ottoman policies. Charles V had come to an agreement with Pope Paul III for the organisation of the Council of Trent (1545). The refusal of the Lutheran Schmalkaldic League to recognize the council's validity led to a war, won by Charles V with the imprisonment of the Protestant princes. However, Henry II of France offered new support to the Lutheran cause and strengthened a close alliance with the sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, the ruler of the Ottoman Empire since 1520. Charles V conceded the Peace of Augsburg and abandoned his multi-national project with a series of abdications in 1556 that divided his hereditary and imperial domains between the Spanish Habsburgs headed by his son Philip II of Spain and the Austrian Habsburgs headed by his brother Ferdinand, who was Archduke of Austria in Charles's name since 1521 and the designated successor as emperor since 1531.[8][9][10] The Duchy of Milan and the Habsburg Netherlands were left in personal union to the King of Spain, but remained part of the Holy Roman Empire. The two Habsburg dynasties remained allied until the extinction of the Spanish line in 1700. In 1557, Charles retired to the Monastery of Yuste in Extremadura and died there a year later. IGNATIUS LOYOLA, MYSTIC, EDUCATOR, PREACHER, AND FOUNDER OF THE JESUITS (31 JULY 1556); Albrecht Durer of ALBRECHT DUÂœRER, 1528, MATTHIAS GRUÂœNEWALD, 1529, LUCAS CRANACH the ELDER, 1553,ARTISTS, 5 August; Lucas Cranach of ALBRECHT DUÂœRER, 1528, MATTHIAS GRUÂœNEWALD, 1529, LUCAS CRANACH the ELDER, 1553,ARTISTS, 5 August; Matthias Grunewald of ALBRECHT DUÂœRER, 1528, MATTHIAS GRUÂœNEWALD, 1529, LUCAS CRANACH the ELDER, 1553, ARTISTS, 5 August ; St Macarius the Roman, Commemorated on August 15; TERESA OF AVILA, REFORMER AND CONTEMPLATIVE (15 OCT 1582); Venerable Macarius the Roman of Novgorod, Commemorated on January 19 ; Hieromartyr Hermogenes the Patriarch of Moscow and Wonderworker of All Russia, Commemorated on February 17; MARTIN LUTHER, EDUCATOR, TRANSLATOR (18 FEB 1546) ; Beheading of the Venerable Cornelius the Abbot of the Pskov Caves, Commemorated on February 20; OLAVUS PETRI, Priest 19 April 1552, Laurentius Petri, Archbishop of Uppsala 1573, Commemorated April 19 ; St Basil the Bishop of Ostrog in Montenegro, Serbia, Commemorated on April 29; St Zosimas II of Kumurdo, Commemorated on May 1; Nicholas Copernicus of NICHOLAS COPERNICUS and JOHANNES KEPLER, ASTRONOMERS, 1543 & 1630, Commemorated May 23 ; JOHN CALVIN, THEOLOGIAN, 1564, commemorated May 28;

Belgium, 1526-1804, Holy Roman Empire, Hapsburg Empire, Austria
Belgium, Holy Roman Empire, 1526-1804, Hapsburg Empire, Austria; St John of Galesh, Commemorated on October 21; Martyr Oprea of Salistie in Romania, Commemorated on October 21;

Belgium, 1530-1550, Macarius t Roman, writings sent to Russia, mosquitos, pet bears, divine light, night fire pillar, day cloud, m
Rome, 1530-1550, Macarius the Roman (Aniene River, Tiber River 5), wealthy, educated, to save his soul, protestant reformation, Holy Fathers writings, conflicts within Western Church, God sent him to Russia & Orthodox, Novgorod churches and monasteries, monk at Alexander's River Svir m, solitary life at R Lezna, mosquitos, pet bears, hunters, divine light, many people, move to elevated place, night pillar of fire, day cloud of fragrant smoke, monastery, 1540 church, ordained priest and igumen, clairvoyance&wonderworking, back to island solitary, d 1550; Rome; St Macarius the Roman, Commemorated on August 15; Macarius the Roman was born at the end of the fifteenth century into a wealthy family of Rome. parents raised him in piety and gave him an excellent education. might have expected a successful career in public service, but he did not desire honors or earthly glory. Instead, he focused on how to save his soul. lived in an age when the Christian West was shaken by the Protestant Reformation. others around him were pursuing luxury and lascivious pleasures, he studied the Holy Scriptures and the writings of the Fathers. Macarius was grieved to see so many darkened by sin and worldly vanity, and was disturbed by the rebellions and conflicts within the Western Church. tears, he asked God to show him the path of salvation, and his prayer did not go unanswered. He came to realize that he would find the safe harbor of salvation in the Orthodox Church. Macarius left Rome secretly, and set out for Russia without money, and wearing an old garment. After many sufferings on his journey, he arrived in Novgorod, where he rejoiced to see so many churches and monasteries. of these monasteries had been founded three centuries before by his fellow countryman, Saint Anthony the Roman (August 3). Macarius came to the banks of the River Svir, where Saint Alexander of Svir (April 17 and August 30) had founded the monastery of the Holy Trinity. Alexander received Macarius into the Orthodox Church and tonsured him as a monk. however longed for the solitary life. He moved to an island on the River Lezna, forty-five miles from Novgorod, where he engaged in ascetical struggles and unceasing prayer. winters were very cold, and the summers were hot and humid. The marshy area was also a breeding ground for mosquitos, which tormented the saint. Macarius survived on berries, roots, and herbs. Sometimes bears would come to him for food, and they allowed him to pet them. a great lamp of the spiritual life could not remain hidden for long. One rainy night someone knocked on his door and asked him to open it. Several people, who seemed to be hunters, entered his cell. by his appearance, and the divine light shining from his face, the men asked for his blessing. They told him they had come to the forest to hunt, and only by the prayers of the saint did God permit them to find him. “It is not my sinful prayers,” he told them, “but the grace of God which led you here.” feeding them, he spoke and prayed with them, then showed them the way out of the marsh. Macarius was concerned that his peace would be disturbed, now that his dwelling place was known. His fears were justified, because many people sought him out to ask for his advice and prayers. holy ascetic decided to move even farther into the wilderness, choosing an elevated place on the left bank of the Lezna. Even here, however, he was not able to conceal himself for very long. a pillar of fire would rise up into the sky at night above his place of refuge. the day, the grace of God was made manifest by a fragrant cloud of smoke. by these signs, the local inhabitants of the region were able to find him once more. of his visitors begged Saint Macarius to permit them to live near him and to be guided by his counsels. Seeing that this was the Lord’s will, he did not refuse them. He blessed them to build cells, and this was the foundation of his monastery. 1540, they built a wooden church dedicated to the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos. Macarius was ordained to the holy priesthood by Bishop Macarius of Novgorod, who later became Metropolitan of All Russia. The hierarch also appointed Saint Macarius as igumen of the monastery. Macarius was an example to the others, and was given the gifts of clairvoyance and wonderworking from God. wore himself out with his labors and vigils, encouraging others not to become faint-hearted in their own struggles. several years, he entrusted the monastery to one of his disciples, and returned to the island where he had first lived. There he fell asleep in the Lord on August 15, 1550. disciples buried him outside on the left side of the Dormition church which he had founded. Hermitage of Saint Macarius was never a prosperous monastery with many monks, but it was distinguished by the high level of spiritual life. the seventeenth century, many of the monasteries near Novgorod were plundered by Swedish invaders. Hermitage of Saint Macarius was also burned in 1615, and some of the monks were put to the sword. the eighteenth century, the monastery had become a dependency of the Saint Alexander Nevsky Lavra in Saint Petersburg. Empress Catherine closed it in 1764, just as she had closed other monasteries, and it was designated as a parish church. pilgrims still came to venerate the saint’s relics and to celebrate his Feast Day, the buildings soon fell into ruin. the mid-nineteenth century, some benefactors restored the two churches and the miraculous healing spring which the saint himself had dug. this time an old priest was living there, and he celebrated the church services until his death. 1894, the monastery began to function once more under the noted missionary Hieromonk Arsenius, who introduced the Athonite Typikon. monastery was destroyed by the Soviets in 1932. Macarius the Roman is commemorated on August 15 (the date of his repose), and also on January 19 (his nameday).

Belgium, 1534-1549, Pope, Paul III, Jesuits
Pope, 1534-1549, Paul III ; IGNATIUS LOYOLA, MYSTIC, EDUCATOR, PREACHER, AND FOUNDER OF THE JESUITS (31 JULY 1556) ; 1537 the Jesuits (now ten in number) gathered in Venice and (having found that renewed war in Palestine made journeying there impossible) offered their services to Pope Paul III. Ignatius and some of the others were ordained to the priesthood, and they were assigned various tasks. 1540 they became a formal organization, with the usual monastic vows, plus a fourth vow of personal obedience to the Pope. In order to have more time for preaching and study the order abolished the practice (followed by almost all previous orders) of reciting the monastic Hours in community. Its chief goals were: (a) renewal of the Roman Catholic Church through extensive education and the encouragement of frequent use of the sacraments, (b) extensive missionary work in non-Christian countries, and (c) a suitable response to the growing challenge of Protestantism. St Zosimas II of Kumurdo, Commemorated on May 1; St Macarius the Roman, Commemorated on August 15;

Belgium, 1550, Brussels-“Scheldt Maritime Canal (est. 1550)
Brussels-“Scheldt Maritime Canal ;

Belgium, 1556-1564, HRE Emperor, Ferdinand I, Spaniard, Bohemian, German, wars w M's and P's
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1556-1564, Ferdinand I; I (Spanish: Fernando I) (10 March 1503-“ 25 July 1564) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1556, King of Bohemia, Hungary, and Croatia from 1527, and Archduke of Austria from 1521 until his death in 1564.[1][2] Before his accession, he ruled the Austrian hereditary lands of the Habsburgs in the name of his elder brother, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. Also, he often served as Charles' representative in Germany and developed encouraging relationships with German princes. The key events during his reign were the contest with the Ottoman Empire, which in the 1520s began a great advance into Central Europe, and the Protestant Reformation, which resulted in several wars of religion. Ferdinand was able to defend his realm and make it somewhat more cohesive, but he could not conquer the major part of Hungary. His flexible approach to Imperial problems, mainly religious, finally brought more result than the more confrontational attitude of his brother.[3] Ferdinand's motto was Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus: "Let justice be done, though the world perish".[4] Icon of the Mother of God of Narva, Commemorated on August 14; TERESA OF AVILA, REFORMER AND CONTEMPLATIVE (15 OCT 1582); Hieromartyr Hermogenes the Patriarch of Moscow and Wonderworker of All Russia, Commemorated on February 17; Beheading of the Venerable Cornelius the Abbot of the Pskov Caves, Commemorated on February 20; JOHN CALVIN, THEOLOGIAN, 1564, commemorated May 28;

Belgium, 1559-1623, Macarius, Zhabyn's founder, Poles destroyed, new spring water fPole, forgotten, then incorrupt r
Russia, Ryazan, 1559-1623, Macarius oZhabyn's Monastery, Belev, Rayazan, born 1539, Tonsured Onuphrius, founded Z monastery 1585 near Belev, 1615 Z destroyed by Lisovski's Poles, M restored it, Stone church this time, with gates bell-tower, lifetime severe monk struggles, cold heat hunger thirst , prayed tGod solitude deep into forest, once heard lost moaning polish enemy, probably destroyed monastery, asked for drink, love surged forth, prayer, plunged staff, spring gushed forth, gave man a drink, when monastery life restored, M withdrew took Schema name Macarius, forgotten about until incorrupt relics found in 1818, then Igumen Jonah fOptina near Zhabyn became head oZhabyn and reestablished Feast oSaint Macarius 1888; Zhabyn's Monastery was on the Oka River not far from Belev; Zhabyn's Monastery was on the Oka River not far from Belev ; Venerable Macarius of Zhabyn the Wonderworker, Commemorated January 22 ; Macarius of Zhabyn, Wonderworker of Belev, was born in the year 1539. his early years he was tonsured with the name Onuphrius, in the year 1585 he founded Zhabyn’s Monastery of the Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos into the Temple near the River Oka, not far from the city of Belev. 1615 the monastery was completely destroyed by Polish soldiers under the command of Lisovski. to the charred remains, the monk began to restore the monastery. He again gathered the brethren, in place of the wooden church a stone church was built in honor of the Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos into the Temple (November 21), a bell-tower at the gates. saint spent his life in austere monastic struggles, cold, heat, hunger and thirst, as the monastery accounts relate. often went deep into the forest, where he prayed to God in solitude. when he was following a path in the forest, he heard a faint moaning. looked around and saw a weary Polish man reclining against a tree trunk, with his sabre beside him. had strayed from his regiment and had become lost in the forest. In a barely audible voice this enemy, might have been one of the destroyers of the monastery, for a drink of water. and sympathy surged up within the monk. With a prayer to the Lord, he plunged his staff into the ground. At once, a fresh spring of water gushed forth, and he gave the dying man a drink. both the external and internal life of the monastery had been restored, Onuphrius withdrew from the general monastic life, having entrusted the guidance of the brethren to one of his disciples, took the schema with the name Macarius. the place of his solitude, he chose a spot along the upper tributary of the River Zhabynka. one verst separated the mouth of the tributary and the banks of the River Oka. ascetical struggles of Saint Macarius were concealed not only from the world, but also from his beloved brethren. died in 1623 at the age of eighty-four, at the hour when the roosters start to crow. He was buried opposite the gates of the monastery on January 22, the commemoration of Saint Timothy, where a church was later built and named for him. Iconographic Originals has preserved a description of Saint Macarius in his last years: had gray hair with a small beard, and over his monastic riassa he wore the schema. of Saint Macarius was established at the end of the seventeenth century, or the beginning of the eighteenth. to Tradition, his relics remained uncovered, but by 1721 they were interred in a crypt. the eighteenth century the monastery became deserted. memory of his deeds and miracles was so completely forgotten, when the incorrupt relics of the monastery’s founder were uncovered during the construction of the church of Saint Nicholas in 1816, a general panikhida was served over them. restoration of the liturgical commemoration of Saint Macarius of Belev is credited to Igumen Jonah, was born on January 22 (the Feast of Saint Macarius), who began his own monastic journey at the Optina monastery not far from the Zhabyn monastery. 1875 Igumen Jonah became head of the Zhabyn monastery. request to re-establish the Feast of Saint Macarius strengthened by the petition of the people of Belev, through the centuries had preserved their faith in the saint. January 22, 1888, the annual commemoration of Saint Macarius of Zhabyn was resumed. 1889, a church dedicated to Saint Macarius was built at his tomb. Jonah who lived at the monastery and actually participated in the construction, that in addition to the building project, the holy relics of Saint Macarius would also be uncovered. everything was on the point of readiness, Macarius appeared to the participants and sternly warned them that they should not proceed with their intention, or they would be punished. memory of this appearance was reverently preserved among the monks of the monastery. Macarius of Zhabynsk is also commemorated on September 22.

Belgium, 1562-1591, JOHN OF THE CROSS,Avila, Spain, Writer, Poet, Discalced&Calced Carmelites, mod vs extreme reform
Spain and Portugal, 1562-1591, JOHN OF THE CROSS,Avila, Spain, Writer, Poet, Discalced and Calced Carmelites, , orphan, Jewish background, Jesuit, priest 1567, discalced strict like Teresa oAvila, 1577 imprisioned darkness solitude by Calced iToledo 9mos, composed poems there, joined calced m, moderate vs extremeist reformers, aModerate r, when extremists gained control denounced as traitor sent tRemote friary Ubeda, fell ill died 1591, Poems, Dark Night otSoul, how spiritual desolation increases faith, Ascent oMt Carmel, same p wDifferent Commentary, the Spiritual Canticle about love between Christian and Christ symbolized bride and groom like Song oSolomon, the Living Flame about soul transformed bGrace; Spain and Portugal, 1562-1591, JOHN OF THE CROSS,Avila, Spain, Writer, Poet, Discalced and Calced Carmelites; of the Cross (24 June 1542 – 14 December 1591), venerated as Saint John of the Cross, was a Spanish Catholic priest, mystic, and a Carmelite friar of converso origin. He is a major figure of the Counter-Reformation in Spain, and he is one of the thirty-six Doctors of the Church. of the Cross is known especially for his writings. He was mentored by and corresponded with the older Carmelite, Teresa of Ávila. Both his poetry and his studies on the development of the soul are considered the summit of mystical Spanish literature and among the greatest works of all Spanish literature. He was canonized by Pope Benedict XIII in 1726. In 1926 he was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius XI, and is commonly known as the "Mystical Doctor". Avila (Adaja River); TERESA OF AVILA, REFORMER AND CONTEMPLATIVE (15 OCT 1582); JOHN OF THE CROSS, MYSTIC AND MONASTIC REFORMER, 1591, Commemorated December 14; Juan de Ypres y Alvarez was born in 1542. His father died soon after, and Juan was brought up in an orphanage. father was probably Jewish. It is remarkable how many of the most memorable Spanish Christians have been of Jewish background.) seventeen, he enrolled as a student in a Jesuit college, and at twenty-one, he joined the Carmelite Friars. was ordained in 1567, and almost immediately met Teresa of Avila, a Carmelite Nun who was undertaking to return the Order to its original strict rule, which had been gradually relaxed to the detriment, as she believed, of the spiritual lives of the members of the Order. who followed the strict rule as promulgated by Teresa went barefoot or wore sandals instead of shoes, and so became known as Discalced (unshod) Carmelites, or Carmelites of the Strict Observance. John undertook to adopt the stricter rule and encourage others to do so. all members of the order welcomed the change. In 1577 a group of Calced Carmelites, or Carmelites of the Ancient Observance, kidnapped John and demanded that he renounce the reform. When he refused, he was imprisoned in complete darkness and solitude in a Calced monastery in Toledo for about nine months. He then escaped and fled to a Calced monastery. While imprisoned at Toledo, he had begun to compose some poems, and now he wrote them down, with commentaries on their spiritual significance. was given various positions of leadership among the reformed friars, then dissension broke out among the reformers between "moderates" and "extremists." supported the moderate party, when the extremists gained control, they denounced him as a traitor to the reform. was sent to a remote friary, and fell ill, and finally died at Ubeda during the night preceding 14 December 1591. poems include: Dark Night of The Soul (about the experience of spiritual desolation, of feeling abandoned and rejected by God, and why this is for some Christians a means by which God increases our faith in Him; about the Christian walk, the life of prayer and contemplation, and growing in love and grace) Ascent of Mount Carmel (same poem as the preceding, but with a different commentary attached) Spiritual Canticle (about the love between the Christian and Christ as symbolized by the love between bride and groom; draws heavily upon the imagery of the Song of Solomon) Living Flame of Love (about the soul transformed by grace) works have been translated into English by David Lewis (1906), and by E. Allison Peers (1953). His poems have been translated by Roy Campbell and are available in Penguin paperback. The following extracts are quoted from the poetic translation by Peers. The Spiritual Canticle: Whither hast vanished Beloved, and hast left me full of woe, And like the hart hast sped, Wounding, ere thou didst go, Thy love, who follow'd, crying high and low? ... Oh that my griefs would end! Come, grant me thy fruition full and free! And henceforth do thou send No messenger to me, or none but thou my comforter can be. ... My love is as the hills, The lonely valleys clad with forest-trees, The rushing, sounding rills, Strange isles in distant seas, Lover-like whisperings, murmurs of the breeze. My love is hush-of-night, Is dawn's first breathings in the heav'n above, Still music veiled from sight, Calm that can echoes move, The feast that brings new strength--the feast of love ... Rare gifts he scattered As through these woods and groves he pass'd apace Turning, as on he sped, And clothing every place With loveliest reflection of his face. ... The creatures, all around, Speak of thy graces as I pass them by. Each deals a deeper wound And something in their cry Leaves me so raptur'd that I fain would die. The Living Flame of Love: O Living flame of love That, burning, dost assail My inmost soul with tenderness untold, Since thou dost freely move, Deign to consume the veil Which sunders this sweet converse that we hold ... And O, ye lamps of fire, In whose resplendent light The deepest caverns where the senses meet, Erst steeped in darkness dire, Blaze with new glories bright And to the loved one give both light and heat! by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1564-1576, HRE Emperor, Maximilian II, H AUS, Bohemian, GER, C unity, wars with H Spain and Ms
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1564-1576, Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor; II (31 July 1527 -“ 12 October 1576), a member of the Austrian House of Habsburg, was Holy Roman Emperor from 1564 until his death. He was crowned King of Bohemia in Prague on 14 May 1562 and elected King of Germany (King of the Romans) on 24 November 1562. On 8 September 1563 he was crowned King of Hungary and Croatia in the Hungarian capital Pressburg (Pozsony in Hungarian; now Bratislava, Slovakia). On 25 July 1564 he succeeded his father Ferdinand I as ruler of the Holy Roman Empire.[1][2] rule was shaped by the confessionalization process after the 1555 Peace of Augsburg. Though a Habsburg and a Catholic, he approached the Lutheran Imperial estates with a view to overcome the denominational schism,[further explanation needed] which ultimately failed. He also was faced with the ongoing Ottoman-“Habsburg wars and rising conflicts with his Habsburg Spain cousins. According to Fichtner, Maximilian failed to achieve his three major aims: rationalizing the government structure, unifying Christianity, and evicting the Turks from Hungary.[3] TERESA OF AVILA, REFORMER AND CONTEMPLATIVE (15 OCT 1582); Hieromartyr Hermogenes the Patriarch of Moscow and Wonderworker of All Russia, Commemorated on February 17; Beheading of the Venerable Cornelius the Abbot of the Pskov Caves, Commemorated on February 20;

Belgium, 1576-1612, HRE Emperor, Rudolf II, SPN, Vienna, Prague, B, 30Y war, Art, occult, science
Holy Roman Emperor, 1576-1612, Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor; II (18 July 1552 -“ 20 January 1612) was Holy Roman Emperor (1576-1612), King of Hungary and Croatia (as Rudolf I, 1572-“1608), King of Bohemia (1575-“1608/1611) and Archduke of Austria (1576-“1608). He was a member of the House of Habsburg. legacy has traditionally been viewed in three ways:[1] an ineffectual ruler whose mistakes led directly to the Thirty Years' War; a great and influential patron of Northern Mannerist art; and an intellectual devotee of occult arts and learning which helped seed what would be called the scientific revolution. life[edit] Rudolf, aged 15, painted by Alonso Sinchez Coello. was born in Vienna on 18 July 1552. He was the eldest son and successor of Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, and King of Hungary and Croatia; his mother was Maria of Spain, a daughter of Charles V and Isabella of Portugal. He was the elder brother of Matthias who was to succeed him as king of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor. spent eight formative years, from age 11 to 19 (1563-“1571), in Spain, at the court of his maternal uncle Philip II, together with his younger brother Ernest, future governor of the Low Countries.[2] After his return to Vienna, his father was concerned about Rudolf's aloof and stiff manner, typical of the more conservative Spanish court, rather than the more relaxed and open Austrian court; but his Spanish mother saw in him courtliness and refinement.[3] In the years following his return to Vienna, Rudolf was crowned King of Hungary (1572), King of Bohemia and King of the Romans (1575)[4] when his father was still alive. would remain for the rest of his life reserved, secretive, and largely a recluse who did not like to travel or even partake in the daily affairs of state.[3] He was more intrigued by occult learning such as astrology and alchemy, which was mainstream in the Renaissance period, and had a wide variety of personal hobbies such as horses, clocks, collecting rarities, and being a patron of the arts. He suffered from periodic bouts of "melancholy" (depression), which was common in the Habsburg line. These became worse with age, and were manifested by a withdrawal from the world and its affairs into his private interests. life[edit] portrait bust of Rudolf II in the collection of the Antwerp City Hall, Belgium by Martino Rota. Elizabeth I of England (who was born 19 years before he was), Rudolf dangled himself as a prize in a string of diplomatic negotiations for marriages, but never in fact married. During his periods of self-imposed isolation, Rudolf reportedly had affairs with his court chamberlain, Wolfgang von Rumpf, and a series of valets. One of these, Philip Lang, ruled him for years and was hated by those seeking favour with the emperor.[5] addition, Rudolf was known to have had a succession of affairs with women, some of whom claimed to have been impregnated by him.[3] He had several illegitimate children with his mistress Catherina Strada. Their eldest son, Don Julius Caesar d'Austria, was likely born between 1584 and 1586 and received an education and opportunities for political and social prominence from his father.[6] In 1607, Rudolf sent Julius to live at Krumlov in Bohemia (in what is now the Czech Republic), a castle which Rudolf purchased from Peter Vok/Wok von Rosenberg, the last of the House of Rosenberg, after he fell into financial ruin. Julius lived at Krumlov when in 1608 he reportedly abused and murdered the daughter of a local barber, who had been living in the castle, and then disfigured her body. Rudolf condemned his son's act and suggested that he should be imprisoned for the rest of his life. However, Julius died in 1609 after showing signs of schizophrenia, refusing to bathe, and living in squalor; his death was apparently caused by an ulcer that ruptured.[6] artworks commissioned by Rudolf are unusually erotic.[7] The emperor was the subject of a whispering campaign by his enemies in his family and the Catholic Church in the years before he was deposed. Sexual allegations may well have formed a part of the campaign against him.[8] succeeded his father Maximilian II on 12 October 1576.[4] In 1583 he moved the court to Prague.[9] have traditionally blamed Rudolf's preoccupation with the arts, occult sciences, and other personal interests as the reason for the political disasters of his reign.[1] More recently historians have re-evaluated this view and see his patronage of the arts and occult sciences as a triumph and key part of the Renaissance, while his political failures are seen as a legitimate attempt to create a unified Christian empire, which was undermined by the realities of religious, political and intellectual disintegrations of the time.[1] by Aegidius Sadeler (1603). of Rudolf II as a young man by Martino Rota. raised in his uncle's Catholic court in Spain, Rudolf was tolerant of Protestantism and other religions including Judaism.[3] He largely withdrew from Catholic observances, even in death refusing the last sacramental rites. He had little attachment to Protestants either, except as counter-weight to papal policies. He put his primary support behind conciliarists, irenicists and humanists. When the papacy instigated the Counter-Reformation, using agents sent to his court, Rudolf backed those whom he thought were the most neutral in the debate, not taking a side or trying to effect restraint, thus leading to political chaos and threatening to provoke civil war.[1] conflict with the Ottoman Empire was the final cause of his undoing. Unwilling to compromise with the Turks, and stubbornly determined that he could unify all of Christendom with a new Crusade, he started a long and indecisive war with the Turks in 1593.[10] This war lasted till 1606, and was known as "The Long War".[1] By 1604 his Hungarian subjects were exhausted by the war and revolted, led by Stephen Bocskay (Bocskai Uprising). In 1605 Rudolf was forced by his other family members to cede control of Hungarian affairs to his younger brother Archduke Matthias. By 1606 Matthias forged a difficult peace with the Hungarian rebels (Peace of Vienna) and the Turks (Peace of Zsitvatorok). Rudolf was angry with his brother's concessions, which he saw as giving away too much in order to further Matthias' hold on power. So Rudolf prepared to start a new war with the Turks. But Matthias rallied support from the disaffected Hungarians and forced Rudolf to cede the crowns of Hungary, Austria, and Moravia to him. At the same time, seeing a moment of royal weakness, Bohemian Protestants demanded greater religious liberty, which Rudolf granted in the Letter of Majesty in 1609. The Bohemians continued to press for further freedoms, and Rudolf used his army to repress them. The Bohemian Protestants then appealed to Matthias for help; Matthias' army then held Rudolf prisoner in his castle in Prague until 1611, when Rudolf ceded the crown of Bohemia to his brother. Crown of Rudolf II later became the imperial crown of the Austrian Empire. scepter and globus cruciger of Rudolf II. died in 1612, nine months after he had been stripped of all effective power by his younger brother, except the empty title of Holy Roman Emperor, to which Matthias was elected five months later. In May 1618 with the event known as the Defenestration of Prague, the Protestant Bohemians, in defence of the rights granted them in the Letter of Majesty, threw imperial officials out of the window and thus the Thirty Years' War (1618-“1648) started. collecting and patronage[edit] moved the Habsburg capital from Vienna to Prague in 1583. Rudolf loved collecting paintings, and was often reported to sit and stare in rapture at a new work for hours on end.[3] He spared no expense in acquiring great past masterworks, such as those of Durer and Brueghel. He was also patron to some of the best contemporary artists, who mainly produced new works in the Northern Mannerist style, such as Bartholomeus Spranger, Hans von Aachen, Giambologna, Giuseppe Arcimboldo, Aegidius Sadeler, Roelant Savery, and Adrian de Vries, as well as commissioning works from Italians like Veronese. Rudolf's collections were the most impressive in the Europe of his day, and the greatest collection of Northern Mannerist art ever assembled.[1] The adjective Rudolfine, as in "Rudolfine Mannerism" is often used in art history to describe the style of the art he patronized. love of collecting went far beyond paintings and sculptures. He commissioned decorative objects of all kinds and in particular mechanical moving devices. Ceremonial swords and musical instruments, clocks, water works, astrolabes, compasses, telescopes and other scientific instruments, were all produced for him by some of the best craftsmen in Europe. patronized natural philosophers such as the botanist Charles de l'Ecluse, and the astronomers Tycho Brahe and Johannes Kepler both attended his court. Tycho Brahe developed the Rudolphine Tables (finished by Kepler, after Brahe's death), the first comprehensive table of data of the movements of the planets. As mentioned before, Rudolf also attracted some of the best scientific instrument makers of the time, such as Jost Burgi, Erasmus Habermel and Hans Christoph Schissler. They had direct contact with the court astronomers and, through the financial support of the court, they were economically independent to develop scientific instruments and manufacturing techniques.[11] painted as Vertumnus, Roman God of the seasons, by Giuseppe Arcimboldo (1590-“91). Rudolf greatly appreciated the work. poet Elizabeth Jane Weston, a writer of Renaissance Latin poetry, was also part of his court and wrote numerous odes to him. kept a menagerie of exotic animals, botanical gardens, and Europe's most extensive "cabinet of curiosities"[3] (Kunstkammer) incorporating "the three kingdoms of nature and the works of man". It was housed at Prague Castle, where between 1587 and 1605 he built the northern wing to house his growing collections.[12] A lion and a tiger were allowed to roam the castle, documented by the account books which record compensation paid to survivors of attacks, or to family members of victims.[13] was even alleged by one person to have owned the Voynich manuscript, a codex whose author and purpose, as well as the language and script and posited cipher remain unidentified to this day. According to hearsay passed on in a letter written by Johannes Marcus Marci in 1665, Rudolf was said to have acquired the manuscript at some unspecified time for 600 gold ducats. No evidence in support of this single piece of hearsay has ever been discovered. The Codex Gigas was also in his possessions. was typical of the time, Rudolf II had a portrait painted in the studio of the renowned Alonso Sanchez Coello. Completed in 1567, the portrait depicted Rudolf II at the age of 15. This painting can be seen at the Lobkowicz Palace in the Rozmberk room. ornamented celestial globe with clockwork, made for the Kunstkammer of Rudolf II, 1579 1597, the collection occupied three rooms of the incomplete northern wing. When building was completed in 1605, the collection was moved to the dedicated Kunstkammer. Naturalia (minerals and gemstones) were arranged in a 37 cabinet display that had three vaulted chambers in front, each about 5.5 metres wide by 3 metres high and 60 metres long, connected to a main chamber 33 metres long. Large uncut gemstones were held in strong boxes.[14] Kunstkammer was not a typical "cabinet of curiosities" “ a haphazard collection of unrelated specimens. Rather, the Rudolfine Kunstkammer was systematically arranged in an encyclopaedic fashion. In addition, Rudolf II employed his polyglot court physician, Anselmus Boetius de Boodt, to curate the collection. Anselmus was an avid mineral collector and travelled widely on collecting trips to the mining regions of Germany, Bohemia and Silesia, often accompanied by his Bohemian naturalist friend, Thaddaeus Hagecius. Between 1607 and 1611, Anselmus catalogued the Kunstkammer, and in 1609 he published Gemmarum et Lapidum, one of the finest mineralogical treatises of the 17th century.[14] Castle in 1595 by Joris Hoefnagel. was customary at the time, the collection was private, but friends of the Emperor, artists, and professional scholars were allowed to study it. The collection became an invaluable research tool during the flowering of 17th-century European philosophy, the "Age of Reason". successors did not appreciate the collection and the Kunstkammer gradually fell into disarray. Some 50 years after its establishment, most of the collection was packed into wooden crates and moved to Vienna. The collection remaining at Prague was looted during the last year of the Thirty Years War, by Swedish troops who sacked Prague Castle on 26 July 1648, also taking the best of the paintings, many of which later passed to the Orleans Collection after the death of Christina of Sweden. In 1782, the remainder of the collection was sold piecemeal to private parties by Joseph II. One of the surviving items from the Kunstkammer is a "fine chair" looted by the Swedes in 1648 and now owned by the Earl of Radnor at Longford Castle in England;[15] others survive in museums.[16][17] sciences[edit] coat of arms, 1605 and alchemy were regarded as mainstream scientific fields in Renaissance Prague, and Rudolf was a firm devotee of both. His lifelong quest was to find the Philosopher's Stone and Rudolf spared no expense in bringing Europe's best alchemists to court, such as Edward Kelley and John Dee. Rudolf even performed his own experiments in a private alchemy laboratory.[3] When Rudolf was a prince, Nostradamus prepared a horoscope which was dedicated to him as 'Prince and King'. In the 1590s Sendivogius was active at Rudolph's court.[18] gave Prague a mystical reputation that persists in part to this day, with Alchemists' Alley on the grounds of Prague Castle a popular visiting place and tourist attraction. is also the ruler in many of the legends of the Golem of Prague, either because of, or simply adding to, his occult reputation. Martin De Porres of MARTIN DE PORRES, ROSA DE LIMA, 23 August 16 1639, 1617 ; Johannes Kepler of NICHOLAS COPERNICUS and JOHANNES KEPLER, ASTRONOMERS, 1543 & 1630, Commemorated May 23; TERESA OF AVILA, REFORMER AND CONTEMPLATIVE (15 OCT 1582); Commemoration of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God and the deliverance from the Poles, Commemorated on October 22; Venerable Cyriacus of Bisericani, Romania, Commemorated on December 31; Hieromartyr Hermogenes the Patriarch of Moscow and Wonderworker of All Russia, Commemorated on February 17; Venerable Polycarp of Briansk, Commemorated on February 23; Johannes Kepler of NICHOLAS COPERNICUS and JOHANNES KEPLER, ASTRONOMERS, 1543 & 1630, Commemorated May 23; Venerable Therapon the Abbot of Monza, Commemorated on May 27;

Belgium, 1591-1630, Johannes Kepler, Scientist, laws of planetary motion
Austria, 1591-1630, Johannes Kepler, Scientist Kepler ([3][4] 27 December 1571 - 15 November 1630) was a German astronomer, mathematician, and astrologer. is a key figure in the 17th-century scientific revolution, best known for his laws of planetary motion, and his books Astronomia nova, Harmonices Mundi, and Epitome Astronomiae Copernicanae. These works also provided one of the foundations for Newton's theory of universal gravitation. was a mathematics teacher at a seminary school in Graz, where he became an associate of Prince Hans Ulrich von Eggenberg. Later he became an assistant to the astronomer Tycho Brahe in Prague, and eventually the imperial mathematician to Emperor Rudolf II and his two successors Matthias and Ferdinand II. also taught mathematics in Linz, and was an adviser to General Wallenstein. he did fundamental work in the field of optics, invented an improved version of the refracting (or Keplerian) telescope, and was mentioned in the telescopic discoveries of his contemporary Galileo Galilei. He was a corresponding member of the Accademia dei Lincei in Rome.[5] lived in an era when there was no clear distinction between astronomy and astrology, but there was a strong division between astronomy (a branch of mathematics within the liberal arts) and physics (a branch of natural philosophy). Kepler also incorporated religious arguments and reasoning into his work, motivated by the religious conviction and belief that God had created the world according to an intelligible plan that is accessible through the natural light of reason.[6] described his new astronomy as "celestial physics",[7] as "an excursion into Aristotle's Metaphysics",[8] and as "a supplement to Aristotle's On the Heavens",[9] transforming the ancient tradition of physical cosmology by treating astronomy as part of a universal mathematical physics.[10] Johannes Kepler of NICHOLAS COPERNICUS and JOHANNES KEPLER, ASTRONOMERS, 1543 & 1630, Commemorated May 23;;

Belgium, 1591-1630, JOHANNES KEPLER, ASTRONOMER, Graz, Austria, scientific revoluton, math teacher, optics, refracting telescope
St John of Galesh; Johannes Kepler of NICHOLAS COPERNICUS and JOHANNES KEPLER, ASTRONOMERS, 1543 & 1630, Commemorated May 23;; Kepler (December 27, 1571 – November 15, 1630) was a German mathematician, astronomer and astrologer, and key figure in the 17th century scientific revolution. He is best known for his eponymous laws of planetary motion, codified by later astronomers based on his works Astronomia nova, Harmonices Mundi, and Epitome of Copernican Astronomy. They also provided one of the foundations for Isaac Newton's theory of universal gravitation. During his career, Kepler was a mathematics teacher at a seminary school in Graz, Austria, assistant to astronomer Tycho Brahe, the imperial mathematician to Emperor Rudolf II and his two successors Matthias and Ferdinand II, mathematics teacher in Linz, Austria, an adviser to General Wallenstein. also did fundamental work in the field of optics, invented an improved version of the refracting telescope (the Keplerian Telescope), helped to legitimize the telescopic discoveries of his contemporary Galileo Galilei. lived in an era when there was no clear distinction between astronomy and astrology, there was a strong division between astronomy (a branch of mathematics within the liberal arts) and physics (a branch of natural philosophy). also incorporated religious arguments and reasoning into his work, motivated by the religious conviction that God had created the world according to an intelligible plan that is accessible through the natural light of reason. Kepler's first major astronomical work, Mysterium Cosmographicum (The Cosmographic Mystery, 1596), was the first published defense of the Copernican system. As he indicated in the title, Kepler thought he had revealed God’s geometrical plan for the universe. Much of Kepler’s enthusiasm for the Copernican system stemmed from his theological convictions about the connection between the physical and the spiritual; the universe itself was an image of God, with the Sun corresponding to the Father, the stellar sphere to the Son, and the intervening space between to the Holy Spirit. His first manuscript of Mysterium contained an extensive chapter reconciling heliocentrism with biblical passages that seemed to support geocentrism. extended line of research that culminated in Astronomia nova (A New Astronomy)—including the first two laws of planetary motion—began with the analysis, under Tycho's direction, of Mars' orbit. Based on measurements of the aphelion and perihelion of the Earth and Mars, he created a formula in which a planet's rate of motion is inversely proportional to its distance from the Sun; by late 1602 Kepler reformulated the proportion in terms of geometry: planets sweep out equal areas in equal times—Kepler's second law of planetary motion. He then set about calculating the entire orbit of Mars, using the geometrical rate law and assuming an egg-shaped ovoid orbit. After approximately 40 failed attempts, in early 1605 he at last hit upon the idea of an ellipse, which he had previously assumed to be too simple a solution for earlier astronomers to have overlooked. Finding that an elliptical orbit fit the Mars data, he immediately concluded that all planets move in ellipses, with the sun at one focus—Kepler's first law of planetary motion. was convinced "that the geometrical things have provided the Creator with the model for decorating the whole world." In Harmonices Mundi (Harmony of the Worlds), he attempted to explain the proportions of the natural world—particularly the astronomical and astrological aspects—in terms of music. Among many other harmonies, Kepler articulated what came to be known as the third law of planetary motion. He then tried many combinations until he discovered that (approximately) "The square of the periodic times are to each other as the cubes of the mean distances." When conjoined with Christian Huygens' newly discovered law of centrifugal force it enabled Isaac Newton and others to demonstrate independently that the presumed gravitational attraction between the Sun and its planets decreased with the square of the distance between them. 1615, he completed the first of three volumes of Epitome astronomia Copernicanae (Epitome of Copernican Astronomy). Despite the title, which referred simply to heliocentrism, Kepler's textbook culminated in his own ellipse-based system. The Epitome became Kepler's most influential work. It contained all three laws of planetary motion and attempted to explain heavenly motions through physical causes. It was read by astronomers throughout Europe, and following Kepler's death it was the main vehicle for spreading Kepler's ideas. In the late 17th century, a number of physical astronomy theories drawing from Kepler's work—notably those of Giovanni Alfonso Borelli and Robert Hooke—began to incorporate attractive forces (though not the quasi-spiritual motive species postulated by Kepler) and the Cartesian concept of inertia. This culminated in Isaac Newton's Principia Mathematica (1687), in which Newton derived Kepler's laws of planetary motion from a force-based theory of universal gravitation. — more at Wikipedia

Belgium, 1600-1699, 17th Century Folder, HRE, 30 Yrs War, Karlowitz Treaty ending Ottoman Control Hungary, Balkans

Belgium, 1612-1619, HRE Emperor, Matthias, from Protestant Prague
Holy Roman Emperor, 1612-1619, Matthias, Holy Roman Emperor ; (24 February 1557 - 20 March 1619) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1612 to 1619, Archduke of Austria from 1608 to 1619, King of Hungary and Croatia from 1608 to 1618, and King of Bohemia from 1611 to 1617. His personal motto was Concordia lumine maior (Unity is stronger than light).[2][3] played a significant role in the familial opposition of the Habsburgs against his brother Emperor Rudolf II. After gaining power, he showed little political initiative of his own. The course of his politics was determined by Cardinal Klesl until his fall in 1618. As a consequence of his failed religious and administrative policies the Bohemian Revolt, the initial theatre of the Thirty Years War set off during the final year of his reign.[4] Martin De Porres of MARTIN DE PORRES, ROSA DE LIMA, 23 August 16 1639, 1617 ; Commemoration of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God and the deliverance from the Poles, Commemorated on October 22; Venerable Polycarp of Briansk, Commemorated on February 23; Johannes Kepler of NICHOLAS COPERNICUS and JOHANNES KEPLER, ASTRONOMERS, 1543 & 1630, Commemorated May 23; Johannes Kepler of NICHOLAS COPERNICUS and JOHANNES KEPLER, ASTRONOMERS, 1543 & 1630, Commemorated May 23;

Belgium, 1612-1637, NICHOLAS FERRAR, Little Gidding, ascetics, voluntary poverty for alms, communal living, prayer, fasting
England, 1612-1637, NICHOLAS FERRAR, Little Gidding, ascetics, voluntary poverty for alms, communal living, prayer, fasting, church services, teaching; Ferrar (22 February 1592 – 4 December 1637) was an English scholar, courtier and businessman, who was ordained a deacon in the Church of England. lost much of his fortune in the Virginia Company and retreated with his extended family in 1626 to the manor of Little Gidding, Huntingdonshire, for his remaining years, in an informal spiritual community following High Anglican practice.[1] friend the poet and Anglican priest George Herbert (1593–1633), on his deathbed, sent Ferrar the manuscript of The Temple, telling him to publish the poetry if it might "turn to the advantage of any dejected poor soul." "If not, let him burn it; for I and it are less than the least of God's mercies."[2] Ferrar published them in 1633; they remain in print. Little Gidding; NICHOLAS FERRAR, DEACON, MAN OF PRAYER (1 DEC 1637) ; Ferrar, born in 1592, was the founder of a religious community that lasted from 1626 to 1646. FerrarAfter Nicholas had been ordained as a deacon, he and his family and a few friends retired to Little Gidding, Huntingdonshire, England, to devote themselves to a life of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving (Matthew 6:2,5,16). restored the abandoned church building, and became responsible for regular services there. They taught the neighborhood children, and looked after the health and well-being of the people of the district. read the regular daily offices of the Book of Common Prayer, including the recital every day of the complete Psalter. (Day and night, there was always at least one member of the community kneeling in prayer before the altar, that they might keep the word, "Pray without ceasing.") wrote books and stories dealing with various aspects of Christian faith and practice. fasted with great rigor, and in other ways embraced voluntary poverty, so that they might have as much money as possible for the relief of the poor. community was founded in 1626 (when Nicholas was 34). He died in 1637 (aged 45), and in 1646 the community was forcibly broken up by the Puritans of Cromwell's army. memory of the community survived to inspire and influence later undertakings in Christian communal living, and one of T.S. Eliot's Four Quartets is called "Little Gidding." by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1618-1648, Holy Roman Empire, Thirty Year's War, Protestant Catholic
Belgium, Holy Roman Empire, 1618-1648, Thirty Year's War, Protestant Catholic ;

Belgium, 1619-1637, HRE Emperor, Ferdinand II, devout Catholic
Holy Roman Emperor, 1619-1637, Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor; Martin De Porres of MARTIN DE PORRES, ROSA DE LIMA, 23 August 16 1639, 1617; Venerable Polycarp of Briansk, Commemorated on February 23; Venerable Polycarp of Briansk, Commemorated on February 23; Johannes Kepler of NICHOLAS COPERNICUS and JOHANNES KEPLER, ASTRONOMERS, 1543 & 1630, Commemorated May 23;

Belgium, 1637-1657, HRE Emperor, Ferdinand III, divine right departure to end 30 yr war, weakened his authority
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1637-1657, Ferdinand III; III (Ferdinand Ernest; 13 July 1608 in Graz – 2 April 1657 in Vienna) was from 1621 Archduke of Austria, King of Hungary from 1625, King of Croatia and Bohemia from 1627 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1637 until his death in 1657. ascended the throne at the beginning of the last decade of the Thirty Years' War and introduced lenient policies to depart from old ideas of divine rights under his father, as he had wished to end the war quickly. As the numerous battles had not resulted in sufficient military containment of the Protestant enemies and confronted with decaying imperial power Ferdinand was compelled to abandon the political stances of his Habsburg predecessors in many respects in order to open the long road towards the much delayed peace treaty. Although his authority among the princes would weaken after the war, in Bohemia, Hungary and the Austrias, however, Ferdinand's position as sovereign was uncontested.[3][4] was the first Habsburg monarch to be recognized as a musical composer.[5] Uncovering of the relics of the Venerable Job, Abbot and Wonderworker of Pochaev, Commemorated on August 28; St Gabriel I the Patriarch, Commemorated on August 30;

Belgium, 1658-1705, HRE Emperor, Leopold I, long rule, G Turkish War, recovered Hungary, French wars
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1658-1705, Leopold I ; I ( 9 June 1640 - 5 May 1705) was Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary, Croatia, and Bohemia. The second son of Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor, by his first wife, Maria Anna of Spain, Leopold became heir apparent in 1654 by the death of his elder brother Ferdinand IV. Elected in 1658, Leopold ruled the Holy Roman Empire until his death in 1705, becoming the longest-ruling Habsburg emperor (46 years and 9 months). reign is known for conflicts with the Ottoman Empire in the Great Turkish War (1683-1699) and rivalry with Louis XIV, a contemporary and first cousin, in the west. After more than a decade of warfare, Leopold emerged victorious in the east thanks to the military talents of Prince Eugene of Savoy. By the Treaty of Karlowitz, Leopold recovered almost all of the Kingdom of Hungary, which had fallen under Turkish power in the years after the 1526 Battle of Mohács. fought three wars against France: the Franco-Dutch War, the Nine Years' War, and the War of the Spanish Succession. In this last, Leopold sought to give his younger son Charles the entire Spanish inheritance, disregarding the will of the late Charles II. Leopold started a war that soon engulfed much of Europe. The early years of the war went fairly well for Austria, with victories at Schellenberg and Blenheim, but the war would drag on until 1714, nine years after Leopold's death, which barely had an effect on the warring nations. When peace returned with the Treaty of Rastatt, Austria could not be said to have emerged as triumphant as it had from the war against the Turks.[1] Uncovering of the relics of the Venerable Job, Abbot and Wonderworker of Pochaev, Commemorated on August 28; St Gabriel I the Patriarch, Commemorated on August 30; Icon of the Mother of God of Lesna, Commemorated on September 14 ; Terebovlya Icon of the Most Holy Mother of God, Commemorated on October 1; St Joseph the Confessor of Maramures, Commemorated on April 24;

Belgium, 1699, Treaty of Karlowitz, Ended Ottoman Control Central Europe, Established Hapsburg Monarchy
Austria, 1699, Treaty of Karlowitz, Ended Ottoman Control Central Europe, Established Hapsburg Monarchy;

Belgium, 1700, 18th-21st Century, HRE Folder, Napoleon, HRE Disolved then Revived 2009

Belgium, 1700-1799, 18th Century Folder, Holy Roman Empire, Bach, Handel, French Revolution

Belgium, 1705-1711, Holy Roman Emperor, Joseph I, Holy Roman Emperor
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1705-1711, Joseph I, Holy Roman Emperor; Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frederick Handel of of JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH, GEORGE FREDERICK HANDEL and HENRY PURCELL, COMPOSERS, 1750, 1759, 1695, Commemorated July 28;

Belgium, 1711-1740, Holy Roman Emperor, Charles VI, M Theresa's father
Holy Roman Emperor, 1711-1740, Charles VI; Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frederick Handel of of JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH, GEORGE FREDERICK HANDEL and HENRY PURCELL, COMPOSERS, 1750, 1759, 1695, Commemorated July 28; Venerable Bessarion Sarai the Confessor in Romania, Commemorated on October 21; NIKOLAUS LUDWIG von ZINZENDORF, PROPHETIC WITNESS, 1760, Commemorated May 10 ;

Belgium, 1716-1760, CONRAD WEISER, German PA pioneer, interpreter and Native American diplomat, lived w Iroquois at 16
Affstatt Village, Wurttemberg; CONRAD WEISER, WITNESS TO PEACE and RECONCILIATION, 1760, Commemorated July 13 ; Weiser (November 2, 1696 – July 13, 1760), born Johann Conrad Weiser, Jr., a German Pennsylvanian pioneer, interpreter and effective diplomat between the Pennsylvania Colony and Native Americans. was a farmer, soldier, monk, tanner, and judge as well. He contributed as an emissary in councils between Native Americans and the colonies, especially Pennsylvania, during the French and Indian War. Weiser was born in 1696 in the small village of Affstätt in the Duchy of Württemberg (now part of Germany). Conrad Weiser and his family were among thousands of refugees who left German lands in 1709, many of them from the Palatine area. Weiser family eventually ended up in the Schoharie Valley of New York. age 16, Conrad's father agreed to a chief's proposal for the youth to live with the Mohawks in the upper Schoharie Valley. his stay in the winter and spring of 1712-1713, Weiser learned much about the Mohawk language and the customs of the Iroquois, while enduring hardships of cold, hunger, and homesickness. Conrad Weiser returned to his own people towards the end of July 1713. November 22, 1720, at the age of 24, Weiser married the young German girl Anna Eve Feck (Faeg). 1723 the couple followed the Susquehanna River south out of New York and settled their young family on a farm in Tulpehocken near present-day Reading, Pennsylvania. couple had fourteen children, but only seven reached adulthood. colonial service began in 1731. Iroquois sent Shikellamy, an Oneida chief and friend of Weiser, as an emissary to other tribes and the British. Iroquois trusted him and considered him an adopted son of the Mohawks. impressed the Pennsylvania governor and council, which thereafter relied heavily on his services. signature the winter of 1737, Weiser attempted to broker a peace between southern tribes and the Iroquois. had to survive high snow, freezing temperatures and starvation rations just to make the six-week journey to the Iroquois capital of Onondaga (near persent-day Syracuse, NY). with his fortitude, the Iroquois named Weiser Tarachiawagon (Holder of the Heavens). violence from a war between the Iroquois and southern tribes such as the Catawba would have drawn first Virginia, and then Pennsylvania, into conflict with the Iroquois. this peace-brokering had a profound effect on Native American/colonial relations. his decades-long career, Weiser built on his knowledge of Native American languages and culture. was a key player in treaty negotiations, land purchases, and the formulation of Pennsylvania's policies towards Native Americans. of his early experiences with the Iroquois, Weiser was inclined to be sympathetic to their interpretation of events, as opposed to the Lenape or the Shawnees. may have exacerbated Pennsylvanian-Lenape/Shawnee relations, with bloody consequences in the French and Indian Wars. for many years, Weiser helped to keep the powerful Iroquois allied with the British as opposed to the French. important service contributed to the continued survival of the British colonies and the eventual victory of the British over the French in the French and Indian Wars. 1734 and 1741, Weiser became a follower of Conrad Beissel, a German Seventh Day Baptist preacher. six years, he lived at the monastic settlement, Ephrata Cloister, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. was also teacher and a lay minister of the Lutheran Church; he was one of the founders of Trinity Church in Reading. died on his farm on July 13, 1760. his death, one Iroquois Indian noted to a group of colonists, "We are at a great loss and sit in darkness ... as since his death we cannot so well understand one another." shortly after Conrad Weiser's death, relations between the colonists and the Native Americans began a rapid decline. — more at Wikipedia and the Conrad Weiser Homestead State Park

Belgium, 1731-1787, HENRY MUHLENBERG, organizer American Lutheranism, factionalism d, Free Church model from govt control m
Germany, 1731-1787, HENRY MUHLENBERG, Einbeck, Germany (Weser River 4), organizer of American Lutheranism, danger of factionalism, asking for pastor to take charge, transition to Free Church model from govt control model, famous sons ; Einbeck, Germany HENRY MUHLENBERG, PATRIARCH OF AMERICAN LUTHERANS, 7 October 178; Melchior Muhlenberg is the principal organizer of American Lutheranism. He was born in Einbeck, Germany, in 1711, studied at Goettingen and at Halle. in America at that time were found in a few scattered communities, of various national backgrounds, with no central organization, with a grave danger of factionalism. congregations wrote to Halle University, asking for a pastor to take charge. Francke, a Lutheran leader of the Pietist movement at Halle, chose Muhlenberg and sent him to America. arrived in Charleston on 23 September 1742. He was soon accorded widespread recognition by Lutheran churches, Swedish, and others, the senior Lutheran pastor in America. set the tone for the Lutheran community in what was to be the United States, almost all Lutheran Churches in America today use liturgies which are developed from the one that he proposed for American use. plans for local church government, to congregations that had been accustomed to a great deal of government control, the transition to the "free church" model, and form the basis for plans of local church government in American Lutheran churches today. of his sons, John Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg, served as a general under George Washington in the War of Independence. Another, Frederick Augustus Conrad Muhlenberg, became a member of the Continental Congress, and first speaker of the House of Representatives. A great-grandson, William Augustus Muhlenberg, became an eminent Anglican priest (see 8 April). Melchior Muhlenberg died 7 October 1787, is buried at Trappe, Pennsylvania. epitaph (in Latin) reads: "Who and what he was, future ages will know without a stone." by James Kiefer

Belgium, 1732-1778, Rousseau, enlightenment, modern political, social thought, Facism, Naziism, Communism, democracy, progressive
Switzerland, 1732-1778, Rousseau, enlightenment, modern political, social thought, Facism, Naziism, Communism, democracy, progressive; Rousseau; 28 June 1712 - 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolution and the development of modern political, economic and educational thought.[1] Discourse on Inequality and The Social Contract are cornerstones in modern political and social thought. Rousseau's sentimental novel Julie, or the New Heloise (1761) was important to the development of preromanticism and romanticism in fiction.[2][3] His Emile, or On Education (1762) is an educational treatise on the place of the individual in society. Rousseau's autobiographical writings—the posthumously published Confessions (composed in 1769), which initiated the modern autobiography, and the unfinished Reveries of the Solitary Walker (composed 1776–1778)—exemplified the late-18th-century "Age of Sensibility", and featured an increased focus on subjectivity and introspection that later characterized modern writing. befriended fellow philosopher Denis Diderot in 1742, and would later write about Diderot's romantic troubles in his Confessions. During the period of the French Revolution, Rousseau was the most popular of the philosophers among members of the Jacobin Club. He was interred as a national hero in the Panthéon in Paris, in 1794, 16 years after his death. Absolved From Being Good-Mannered: The Romantic Totalitarianism of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, May 20, 2021 ;

Belgium, 1740-1745, Holy Roman Emperor, Charles VII, German House of Wittelsbach, M Theresa's cousin
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1740-1745, Charles VII, Holy Roman Emperor ; Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frederick Handel of of JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH, GEORGE FREDERICK HANDEL and HENRY PURCELL, COMPOSERS, 1750, 1759, 1695, Commemorated July 28; NIKOLAUS LUDWIG von ZINZENDORF, PROPHETIC WITNESS, 1760, Commemorated May 10 ;

Belgium, 1745-1765, Holy Roman Emperor, Francis I, Maria Theresa's husband
Holy Roman Emperor, 1745-1765, Francis I; Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frederick Handel of of JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH, GEORGE FREDERICK HANDEL and HENRY PURCELL, COMPOSERS, 1750, 1759, 1695, Commemorated July 28; HENRY MUHLENBERG, PATRIARCH OF AMERICAN LUTHERANS, 7 October 1787; St John of Galesh, Commemorated on October 21; St Moses (Macinic), Martyr and Confessor, Commemorated on October 21; St Sophronius the Confessor of Ciorara in Romania, Commemorated on October 21; Venerable Bessarion Sarai the Confessor in Romania, Commemorated on October 21; NIKOLAUS LUDWIG von ZINZENDORF, PROPHETIC WITNESS, 1760, Commemorated May 10 ;

Belgium, 1745-1765, Holy Roman Emperess, Maria Theresa, War of Austrian Succession
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperess, 1745-1765, Maria Theresa; Holy Roman Emperor, 1745-1765, Francis I; HENRY MUHLENBERG, PATRIARCH OF AMERICAN LUTHERANS, 7 October 1787; Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frederick Handel of of JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH, GEORGE FREDERICK HANDEL and HENRY PURCELL, COMPOSERS, 1750, 1759, 1695, Commemorated July 28; St John of Galesh, Commemorated on October 21; St Moses (Macinic), Martyr and Confessor, Commemorated on October 21; St Sophronius the Confessor of Ciorara in Romania, Commemorated on October 21; Venerable Bessarion Sarai the Confessor in Romania, Commemorated on October 21; NIKOLAUS LUDWIG von ZINZENDORF, PROPHETIC WITNESS, 1760, Commemorated May 10 ;

Belgium, 1765-1790, Holy Roman Emperor, Joseph II, Francis and Theresa's son, enlightened absolutism
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1765-1790, Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor; HENRY MUHLENBERG, PATRIARCH OF AMERICAN LUTHERANS, 7 October 1787; Martyr Oprea of Salistie in Romania, Commemorated on October 21; NIKOLAUS LUDWIG von ZINZENDORF, PROPHETIC WITNESS, 1760, Commemorated May 10 ;

Belgium, 1790-1792, Holy Roman Emperor, Leopold II, brother of Joseph II, enlightened absolutism, no capital punishment
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1790-1792, Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor;

Belgium, 1792-1806, Holy Roman Emperor, Francis II, Last HRE, attacked and lost to Napoleon
Belgium, Holy Roman Emperor, 1792-1806, Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor; Translation of a Particle of the Life Giving Cross from Malta to Gatchina, Commemorated on October 12; Translation of the relic of the Right Hand of John the Baptist, Commemorated on October 12; Martyr Avakum the Deacon of Serbia, Commemorated on December 17; St Paisius, Commemorated on December 17; Damien of DAMIEN and MARIANNE of MOLOKAI, PRIEST AND LEPER, 1889; RELIGIOUS 1918, Commemorated April 15;

Belgium, 1800-1899, 19th Centory Folder, Napoleon, Austerlitz, HRE Disolved

Belgium, 1806-1830, First French Republic and Netherlands
Belgium, 1806-1830, First French Republic, and Netherlands;

Belgium, 1804-1835, Austrian Emperor, Francis I aka Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor
Austria, Austrian Emperor, 1804-1835, Francis I aka Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor; Martyr Avakum the Deacon of Serbia, Commemorated on December 17; St Paisius, Commemorated on December 17;

Belgium, 1830, Belgium Revolution, Independent Belgium

Belgium, 1860-1918, DAMIEN and MARIANNE of MOLOKAI Island, Hawaii, Leprosy isolation, organized Ls, Marianne replaced D
Belgium, 1816-1918, DAMIEN and MARIANNE of MOLOKAI Island, Hawaii, Leprosy isolation, organized burial, grow crops, choir, medical, built chapel, Marianne from Germany, replaced D, miraculously did not get Leprosy; Molokai; DAMIEN and MARIANNE of MOLOKAI, PRIEST AND LEPER, 1889; RELIGIOUS 1918, Commemorated April 15 ; the 1800's, the Hawaiian Islands suffered a severe leprosy epidemic, which was dealt with largely by isolating lepers on the island of Molokai. were simply dumped there and left to fend for themselves. The crews of the boats carrying them there were afraid to land, so they simply came in close and forced the lepers to jump overboard and scramble through the surf as best they could. Ashore, they found no law and no organized society, simply desperate persons waiting for death. Belgian missionary priest, Joseph Van Veuster (Damien of the Fathers of the Sacred Heart), born in 1840, came to Hawaii in 1863, and in 1873 was sent at his own request to Molokai to work among the lepers. organized burial details and funeral services, so that death might have some dignity. He taught the people how to grow crops and feed themselves better. He organized a choir, and got persons to sing who had not sung in years. He gave them medical attention. doctors had been making regular visits, but they were afraid of contagion, and would not come close to the patients. They inspected their sores from a distance and then left medicines on a table and fled. Damien personally washed and anointed and bandaged their sores.) was already a small chapel on the island. It proved too small, and with the aid of patients he built a larger one, which soon overflowed every Sunday. Damien contracted leprosy himself in 1885, and continued to work there until his death on 15 April 1889. — by James Kiefer; more at Wikipedia Marianne Cope Marianne Cope (January 23, 1838 – August 9, 1918), was a Franciscan nun of the Sisters of the Third Order of Saint Francis, a religious order of the Roman Catholic Church. in Heppenheim (Germany) and entered religious life in Syracuse, New York, she worked, lived and died for the lepers on the island of Moloka'i in Hawai'i. She was not herself afflicted by the disease, a fact arguably declared to be miraculous considering her close contact with the patients over the course of several years. the age of three her family moved from Germany to the United States, settling in Utica, New York. After joining the Franciscans, she spent nearly a decade as a teacher and then principal in newly established schools for German immigrants. She was also a founding member of two of the first Catholic hospitals in the United States. November 1883, Mother Marianne, then Provincial Mother, traveled from Syracuse to Honolulu with six other nuns to answer a call for aid to the Hansen's disease sufferers. In 1888, she moved to Kalaupapa to help the ailing Father Damien of Moloka'i. When the famed priest died, Mother Marianne Cope took over the care of the patients of Kalaupapa. She remained there until her death in 1918. — more at Wikipedia

Belgium, 1900-1999, 20th Century Folder, WWI Battles Verdun, Messines Ridge, HRE Revived in 2009

Belgium, Battle of Verdun, 1916 (on the road to Paris)
Battle of Verdun (on the road to Paris);

Belgium, 1917, Messines Ridge (Battle in 1917), Belgium
Messines Ridge (Battle in 1917); GEOFFREY ANKETELL STUDDERT KENNEDY, aka Woodbine Willie, PRIEST, 1929, Commemorated March 8 ;

Belgium, Holy Roman Empire Revived, Nov 3, 2009, Centered in Belgium
Holy Roman Empire Revived, Nov 3, 2009, Centered in Belgium; European Union Constitution, Nov 3, 2009; Charlemagne Building;

Belgium (Clean) Folder, and Holy Roman Empire

Belgium, its Area

Belgium, Areas next to Belgium Folder

Next to Netherlands, its Area

Next to France, its Area
France, its Area

Next to Germany, its Area
Germany, its Area

Next to Luxemborg, its Area
Luxemborg, its Area

Franks, Land of the Franks (Belgium then Paris in 508)
Franks;

Markomannia (Land of the Franks, Belgium)
Markomia, Markomannians were Frankish from the Land of the Franks in lower and middle Rhineland;

Belgium, West Belgium, Scheldt River Folder

Scheldt River

Scheldt River Source (Gouy, France)
Scheldt River;

Scheldt River 6 (Gaunt, Lys River Mouth)

Belgium, Scheldt River 6, Lys River Folder (France and Belgium)

Lys River

Lys River Source (Pas de Calais, near Agincourt, France)
Lys River;

Lys River 2 (Western Front WWI)

Lys River 3 (Messines Ridge)

Messines Ridge, Belgium (Lys River 3)
Messines Ridge (Battle in 1917);

Lys River Mouth (Gaunt, Belgium, Scheldt River 6)

Gaunt (Ghent), Belgium (Lys River Mouth, Scheldt River 6
Gaunt;

Antwerp, Belgium (Scheldt River 7)
Antwerp Belgium WILLIAM TYNDALE [AND MILES COVERDALE] TRANSLATORS OF THE BIBLE (6 OCT 1536, 1569);

Scheldt River Mouth (North Sea)

Belgium, East Belgium, Muse River Folder (France, Belgium, Germany and Netherlands)

Meuse River

Meuse River Mouth at North Sea

Meuse River Source (Langres plateau, France)
Langres plateau;

Ardennes Forest, Belgium (Meuse River)
Ardennes Forest ;

Ardennes Department, Belgium (Meuse River)
Ardennes Department;

Meuse River (Leige, Belgium)

Aachen, Belgium (Charlemagne's Capital 792-814, a spa town, near Meuse River)
Aachen;

Meuse River (Roermond, Netherlands)
Roermond; Meuse River;

Meuse River Mouth (North Sea, Netherlands)

Belgium, North Central Belgium, Brussels-Scheldt Canal Folder

Brussels-Scheldt Canal

Brussels, Belgium (Scheldt Canal)
Brussels;

Leuven, Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium, 1425
Leuven, Catholic University of Leuven, 1425;

University of Louvain, Belgium, 1817
University of Louvain;

Belgium, Roman Roads, Rivers, places, German Frontier Folder- Roman Limes Germanticus (Clean)
Frontier (Limes) Germanticus;

Belgium, its Area, includes Germanicus Limes, German Frontier

Roman German Frontier - Lower Limes Germanica

Roman German Frontier - Upper Limes Germanticus

Roman German Frontier - Rhaetian Limes Germaticus

Siegfried Line - German Line between Germany and France
Siegfried Line - German Line between Germany and France;

Maginot Line - French line between France and Germany
Maginot Line;

Sweden, Germania, Goths started down in Germania, not Germany, the fertile plain North of this Line, difficult to protect
Germania, not Germany, the fertile plain North of this Line and South of Sweden, difficult to protect. It is bounded on the East by the Vistula, on the South by the Mountains, and on the West by Rhine and its Roman German Frontier. ;

Brussels, Belgium (Scheldt Canal)
Brussels; JOHN WYCLIF, TRANSLATOR AND CONTROVERSIALIST, 30 OCT. 1384 ;

Scheldt River 1

Scheldt River 2

Scheldt River 3

Lys River 1

Messines Ridge, Belgium (Lys River 3)
Messines Ridge (Battle in 1917); GEOFFREY ANKETELL STUDDERT KENNEDY, aka Woodbine Willie, PRIEST, 1929, Commemorated March 8 ;

Lys River 4

Lys River 5

Gaunt (Ghent), Belgium (Lys River Mouth, Scheldt River 6
Gaunt; England, 1360-1399, John of Gaunt, nobleman, soldier, statesman and prince JOHN WYCLIF, Commemorated October 30 ;

Scheldt River 7 (Antwerp)

Meuse River Source (Langres plateau, France)
Langres plateau; The Meuse rises in Pouilly-en-Bassigny, commune of Le ChÃƒÂƒÃ‚ÂƒÃƒÂ‚Ã‚Â¢telet-sur-Meuse on the Langres plateau in France from where it flows northwards past Sedan (the head of navigation) and Charleville-MÃƒÂƒÃ‚ÂƒÃƒÂ‚Ã‚Â©ziÃƒÂƒÃ‚ÂƒÃƒÂ‚Ã‚Â¨res into Belgium.[3] At Namur it is joined by the River Sambre. Beyond Namur the Meuse winds eastwards, skirting the Ardennes, and passes LiÃƒÂƒÃ‚ÂƒÃƒÂ‚Ã‚Â¨ge before turning north. The river then forms part of the Belgian-Dutch border, except that at Maastricht the border lies further to the west. In the Netherlands it continues northwards through Venlo closely along the border to Germany, then turns towards the west, where it runs parallel to the Waal river and forms part of the extensive RhineÃƒÂƒÃ‚Â¢ÃƒÂ‚Ã‚Â€ÃƒÂ‚Ã‚Â“MeuseÃƒÂƒÃ‚Â¢ÃƒÂ‚Ã‚Â€ÃƒÂ‚Ã‚Â“Scheldt delta, together with the Scheldt river in its south and the Rhine river in the north. The river has been divided near Heusden into the Afgedamde Maas on the right and the Bergse Maas on the left. The Bergse Maas continues under the name of Amer, which is part of the Biesbosch. The Afgedamde Maas joins the Waal, the main stem of the Rhine at Woudrichem, and then flows under the name of Boven Merwede to Hardinxveld-Giessendam, where it splits into Nieuwe Merwede and Beneden Merwede. Near Lage Zwaluwe, the Nieuwe Merwede joins the Amer, forming the Hollands Diep, which splits into Grevelingen and Haringvliet, before finally flowing into the North Sea.

Aachen, Belgium (Charlemagne's Capital 792-814, a spa town, near Meuse River)
Aachen; ALCUIN, DEACON, SCHOLAR, AND ABBOT OF TOURS (20 MAY 804);

Brussels-Scheldt Canal, from Brussels to Scheldt River

Leuven, Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium, 1425
Leuven, Catholic University of Leuven, 1425; Miles Coverdale of WILLIAM TYNDALE and MILES CLOVERDALE, TRANSLATOR OF THE BIBLE (6 OCT 1536, 1569);

University of Louvain, Belgium, 1817
University of Louvain; Hieromartyr Gregory (Peradze) of Georgia, Commemorated November 23 ;