Brianda de Acuña Vela (

religious name A religious name is a type of given name bestowed for religious purposes, and which is generally used in such contexts. Christianity Catholic Church Baptismal name In baptism, Catholic Church, Catholics are given a Christian name, which should n ...

, Teresa de Jesús;

Valverde, La Rioja Valverde is a village in the municipality of Cervera del Río Alhama, in the province and autonomous community of La Rioja, Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories ...

, 17 August 1576 – 22 March 1630) was a Spanish

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 5 ...

and writer. At the , where she took the religious name "Teresa de Jesús", she served as prioress and the mistress of

novice A novice is a person who has entered a religious order and is under probation, before taking vows. A ''novice'' can also refer to a person (or animal e.g. racehorse) who is entering a profession with no prior experience. Religion Buddhism ...

Biography

Brianda de Acuña Vela was born in the town of Valverde, about a from

Logroño Logroño ( , , ) is the capital of the autonomous community of La Rioja (Spain), La Rioja, Spain. Located in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, primarily in the right (South) bank of the Ebro River, Logroño has historically been a place of pa ...

, on 17 August 1576. She was the daughter of and María Vela de Acuña, . She lived in Aranda de Duero and Castrillo, travelling between the two on horseback. When her father was named Viceroy of Navarre, Brianda stayed behind and lived with the Countess of Miranda, with whom she was related. Her religious faith grew, until, at the age of 26, Acuña entered the Convent of Santa Teresa in

Valladolid Valladolid ( ; ) is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and ''de facto'' capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the pr ...

, a cloistered convent for Discalced Carmelite nuns, where she took the name of "Teresa de Jesús". The access ceremony, celebrated on 10 January 1602, was attended by the king and queen,

Philip III of Spain Philip III (; 14 April 1578 – 31 March 1621) was King of Spain and King of Portugal, Portugal (where he is known as Philip II of Portugal) during the Iberian Union. His reign lasted from 1598 until his death in 1621. He held dominion over the S ...

and

Margaret of Austria, Queen of Spain Margaret of Austria (25 December 1584 – 3 October 1611) was Queen of Spain and Portugal by her marriage to King Philip III & II. Biography Margaret was the daughter of Archduke Charles II of Austria and Maria Anna of Bavaria and thus the pa ...

. The admission took place on 2 April 1603. In the convent, she was mistress of novices and also prioress. She distinguished herself for following a

penitent Penance is any act or a set of actions done out of contrition for sins committed, as well as an alternative name for the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Oriental Orthodox sacrament of Reconciliation or Confession. The word ''penance'' derives ...

life. Acuña wrote her own

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life, providing a personal narrative that reflects on the author's experiences, memories, and insights. This genre allows individuals to share thei ...

, some of whose chapters were published in a book about her written by Miguel Batista de Lanuza in the year 1657, entitled , printed in

Zaragoza Zaragoza (), traditionally known in English as Saragossa ( ), is the capital city of the province of Zaragoza and of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributaries, the ...

by Jusepe Lanaga y Lamarca. Its pages include an account of her time in the convent: In that same book, De Lanuza also makes a physical description of Acuña:Bautista (1657), p. 206 Pedro de Villafranca engraved Acuña's portrait on a sheet. She died on 22 March 1630.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brianda de Acuna 1576 births 1630 deaths 17th-century Roman Catholic nuns 17th-century Spanish nuns 17th-century Spanish writers 17th-century Spanish women writers Spanish autobiographers Women autobiographers