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362 362 ST. HEDWIG St. Hedwig (l), May 2 (Advisa, AviA. Avis, Edvigb, etc.). Year un- known. Honoured in Bretagne and at Paris. Chastelain. B. Hedwig (2) d' Arc, April 14, 24 ( AviA, Edwig, Haddewio, etc). + 1 1 89. Prioress. Daughter of B. Hildegund. Le Paige, Bib. Prtem. Chastelain. St. Hedwig (a), Oct. 17 (Avis, Hadwig, Hedwigis; in French, Avoie, Edvige ; in Polish, Jadwicz). + 1243. Duchess of Silesia and Poland. Patron of those countries and of Frankfort on the Oder. Born in 1174, of an ancient German princely house, distinguished no less for its piety f^nd magnificent founda- tions than for its worldly wealth and importance; no less for its saints and missionaries than for its warriors and its queens. Hedwig was the daughter of Berthold, of Andechs, lord of Carinthia, Istria, Meran, and Tyrol, and of Agnes, of Bochlitz, a near relation of the house of A nstria. The castle of Andechs, which was probably the birthplace of St. Hed- wig, was afterwards called the Holy Mountain on account of the number of saints buried there. On another hill near it stood the famous Augustinian monastery of Diessen, built by an ances- tor of Hedwig, and a church of St George, built by a sainted member of the same family as early as 850. St. Otho, of Bamberg, apostle of Pome- rania, and his sister, St. Matilda, of Diessen, were great-uncle and aunt of Hedwig, and were still alive at the time of her marriage. Other saints illustrated the family both before and after the time of which we are speaking, particu- larly St. Elizabeth, landgravine of Thuringia, who was born, married, died, and was canonized during the life of her aunt Hedwig, and whose mother, Gertrude, queen of Hungary, was Hed- wig's sister. St. Hedwig was educated in the monastery of Kitzingen, and there trained in great admiration of asceticism and great fear of the snares of the world and the wiles of the devil. About the year 1 1 86, at the early age of twelve, she was taken from hor convent school to be married to Henry, son of Boloslaus I., duke of Silesia. In 1201, Bolcslaus died, and Henry succeeded to his dominions. Hedwig, in common with many of hor contemporaries, good and bad, regarded cloister life as the most pleasing to God, and the most profitable to the human soul, and considered worldly affairs, ducal state, married life, as so many traps set by the enemy of souls. She aclmowledged the duty of princes to have heirs, but her standard of virtue demanded celibacy, so she trimmed her life ingeniously for the attainment of both objects ; and after providing three sons for the state and Uiree daughters for the cloister, the young couple, by mutual consent, made a vow of celibacy. After this they never met, except for the planning of works of piety or charity, or to discuss the founding or endowment of the churches and religious houses they built in various parts of their dominions, and subjects affecting the public good; and even these conversa- tions were always held in presence of friends or attendants. From this time Henry never shaved, and is therefore distinguished from other Henries as "Henry with the beard," nor did he wear gold and silver ornaments, nor robes of purple, such as were used by other persons of his rank. Hedwig wore the plainest and coarsest clothes, and often went barefooted. They continued to live peaceably and happily together, acting in concert on many recorded occasions. Henry was influenced by her in many ways, and showed his appreciation of her piety and charity by having prisoners released at every place she visited, and by tem- pering his justice with mercy. Duke Henry continued to enlarge his do- minions both by war and by diplo- macy. Under him Silesia attained to her greatest extent, and continued to advance in the prosperity and civiliza- tion his father had laboured to promote. He put down robbery and rapacity, and established safety and justice through- out the land. He was beloved by his subjects, and esteemed by his neigh- bours. Hedwig brought up numbers of orphan girls according to their rank.