Clementine Lynch ( 16 June 1754 22 June 1799), was

Abbess An abbess (Latin: ''abbatissa''), also known as a mother superior, is the female superior of a community of Catholic nuns in an abbey. Description In the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and Eastern Catholic), Eastern Orthodox, Coptic ...

of the

Ypres Ypres ( , ; nl, Ieper ; vls, Yper; german: Ypern ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality co ...

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

during the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

Biography

Lynch was born 16 June 1754 in Ireland and was sent to the Benedictine school in Ypres, then part of the

Austrian Netherlands The Austrian Netherlands nl, Oostenrijkse Nederlanden; french: Pays-Bas Autrichiens; german: Österreichische Niederlande; la, Belgium Austriacum. was the territory of the Burgundian Circle of the Holy Roman Empire between 1714 and 1797. The p ...

, 9 July 1764. When she had completed her school years she remained in the order, becoming first a

postulant A postulant (from la, postulare, to ask) was originally one who makes a request or demand; hence, a candidate. The use of the term is now generally restricted to those asking for admission into a Christian monastery or a religious order for the p ...

on 29 September 1770 and completing her vows on 21 March 1772. She took the name Mary Scholastica. Lynch became the fifth Abbess on 17 October 1783 when she was elected to the position. The convent and surrounding area was invaded by the French in 1793, continuing from the French Revolution of 1789. However because the convent had close ties to its Irish origin and the women were known as ‘the Irish dames of Ypres’, an Irish general, appealed to by Lynch, persuaded the troops to withdraw from the convent and even to pay for damages. The general, believed to be James O'Moran, then suggested the nuns leave convent life but they remained and withstood the town's sieges, despite being particularly close to the town's ramparts, and the province's annexation by France in October 1794. The new government was hostile to the religious nature of the society and between that and the previous experiences, Lynch's health failed. She died 22 June 1799.

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lynch, Clementine 1754 births 1799 deaths Irish Roman Catholic abbesses People from Ypres