12th-century Austrian nobleman and Catholic saint
Leopold III
(
German
:
Luitpold
, 1073 ? 15 November 1136), known as
Leopold the Good
, was the
Margrave of Austria
from 1095 to his death in 1136. He was a member of the
House of Babenberg
. He was canonized on 6 January 1485 and became the
patron saint
of
Austria
,
Lower Austria
,
Upper Austria
and
Vienna
. His
feast day
is 15 November.
[1]
Biography
[
edit
]
Leopold was born at Babenberg castle in
Gars am Kamp
, the son of Margrave
Leopold II
and
Ida of Formbach-Ratelnberg
. The Babenbergs had come to Austria from Bavaria where the family had risen to prominence in the 10th century. He grew up in the diocese of Passau under the influence of the reformer bishop
Altmann of Passau
.
[2]
In 1096, Leopold succeeded his father as margrave of Austria at the age of 23. He married twice. His first wife, who died in 1105, may have been one of the von Perg family. The following year he married
Agnes
,
the widowed sister of Emperor
Henry V
whom he had supported against her father
Henry IV
. This connection to the
Salians
raised the importance of the
House of Babenberg
, to which important royal rights over the margraviate of Austria were granted. Also, Agnes had influential connections through her previous marriage to
Frederick of Hohenstaufen
,
[2]
one of her sons being
Conrad III of Germany
.
Leopold called himself "Princeps Terræ", a reflection of his sense of territorial independence. He was considered a candidate in the election of the
Kaiser
of the
Holy Roman Empire
in 1125, but declined this honour.
He is mainly remembered for the development of the country and, in particular, the founding of several monasteries. His most important foundation is
Klosterneuburg
(1108).
[2]
According to legend, the
Virgin Mary
appeared to him and led him to a place where he found the veil of his wife Agnes, who had lost it years earlier. He established the
Klosterneuburg Monastery
there. He subsequently expanded the settlement to become his residence.
Leopold also founded the monasteries of
Heiligenkreuz
,
Kleinmariazell
and
Seitenstetten
which developed a territory still largely covered by forest. All of these induced the church to
canonize
him in 1485.
Leopold also fostered the development of cities, such as Klosterneuburg,
Vienna
and
Krems
. The last one was granted the right to
mint
but never attained great importance.
The writings of
Henry of Melk
and
Ava of Gottweig
, which are the first literary texts from Austria, date back to Leopold's time.
He is buried in the
Klosterneuburg Monastery
, which he founded. His skull is kept in an embroidered reliquary, which leaves the forehead exposed; it also wears an
archducal hat
.
In 1663, under the rule of his namesake Emperor
Leopold I
, he was declared patron saint of Austria instead of
Coloman of Stockerau
.
The brothers
Joseph
and
Michael Haydn
, each of whom sang in the choir of
St. Stephen's Cathedral
, both sang in that capacity at Klosterneuburg on this day. Joseph Haydn later became the more famous composer of the two. Michael Haydn later (in 1805) wrote a mass in honour of Leopold, the
Missa sub titulo Sancti Leopoldi.
Since the death of Emperor Leopold I, the
King's Feast
is celebrated in
Belgium
on Leopold's feast day.
Children
[
edit
]
His first marriage, possibly to a lady of the von Perg family, was childless.
By his second wife,
Agnes of Germany
, widow of
Frederick I, Duke of Swabia
:
- Adalbert
- Henry II Jasomirgott
(1107?1177)
- Leopold IV
(
c.
1108 ? 1141)
- Berta, m. Henry III, Burgrave of
Regensburg
- Agnes
(c. 1108/13 ? c. 1160/63), m.
Władysław II of Poland
- Ernst
- Uta, m. Luitpold I, Count of Plain
- Otto of Freising
(c. 1114 ? 1158), Bishop of Freising,
and biographer of his nephew (from his mother's first marriage), Emperor
Frederick I Barbarossa
- Conrad
,
Bishop of Passau
and
Archbishop of Salzburg
- Elisabeth, m.
Hermann II of Winzenburg
- Judith
, m.
William V of Montferrat
- Gertrude
, m. Duke (later King)
Vladislaus II of Bohemia
According to the
Continuation of the Chronicles of Klosterneuburg
, there may have been up to seven others (possibly from multiple births) stillborn or who died in infancy.
In 2013, documentation regarding the results of DNA testing of the remains of the family buried in Klosterneuburg Abbey strongly favor that Adalbert was the son of Leopold and Agnes.
[4]
Gallery
[
edit
]
-
Leopold III seal
-
Stained glass, Gaaden, Lower Austria
-
Osterreichische Schule, eighteenth century
-
Saint Leopold Altar,
Stephansdom
-
Saint Leopold's skull relic, Klosterneuburg Monastery
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Lingelbach 1913, pp. 90?91.
- ^
a
b
c
"
"St. Leopold of Babenberg", Canons Regular of St. Augustine"
. Archived from
the original
on 2016-08-21
. Retrieved
2015-03-15
.
- ^
Bauer, Christiane Maria; Bodner, Martin; Niederstatter, Harald; Niederwieser, Daniela; Huber, Gabriela; Hatzer-Grubwieser, Petra; Holubar, Karl; Parson, Walther (February 2013).
"Molecular genetic investigations on Austria's patron saint Leopold III"
.
Forensic Science International. Genetics
.
7
(2): 313?315.
doi
:
10.1016/j.fsigen.2012.10.012
.
PMC
3593208
.
PMID
23142176
.
Sources
[
edit
]
- Beller, Steven (2007).
A Concise History of Austria
. New York: Cambridge University Press.
ISBN
978-0-521-47886-1
.
- Brooke, Z. N. (1938).
A History of Europe: From 911 to 1198
. London: Methuen & Company Ltd.
ISBN
978-1-4437-4070-8
.
- Dopsch, Heinz (1999).
Osterreichische Geschichte 1122-1278
. Vienna: Ueberreuter.
ISBN
978-3-8000-3973-9
.
- Freed, John (2016).
Frederick Barbarossa: The Prince and the Myth
. Yale University Press.
- Lechner, Karl (1976).
Die Babenberger: Markgrafen und Herzoge von Osterreich 976?1246
. Vienna: Bohlau.
ISBN
978-3-205-08508-9
.
- Leeper, Alexander W. (1941).
History of Medieval Austria
. London: Oxford University Press.
ISBN
978-0-404-15347-2
.
- Lingelbach, William E. (1913).
The History of Nations: Austria-Hungary
. New York: P. F. Collier & Son Company.
ASIN
B000L3E368
.
- Pohl, Walter (1995).
Die Welt der Babenberger
. Graz: Verlag Styria.
ISBN
978-3-222-12334-4
.
- Rickett, Richard (1985).
A Brief Survey of Austrian History
. Vienna: Prachner.
ISBN
978-3-85367-001-9
.
- Wegener, Wilhelm (1965).
Genealogischen Tafeln zur mitteleuropaischen Geschichte
. Vienna: Verlag Degener.
External links
[
edit
]
Leopold III, Margrave of Austria
Born:
1073
Died:
1136
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Margrave of Austria
1095?1136
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