Hugh (13 May 1024 – 29 April 1109), sometimes called Hugh the Great or Hugh of Semur, was the

Abbot of Cluny The Abbot of Cluny was the head of the powerful monastery of the Abbey of Cluny in medieval France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, o ...

from 1049 until his death. He was one of the most influential leaders of the

monastic order Monasticism (from Ancient Greek , , from , , 'alone'), also referred to as monachism, or monkhood, is a religious way of life in which one renounces worldly pursuits to devote oneself fully to spiritual work. Monastic life plays an important rol ...

s from the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

Biography

Hugh was descended from the noblest families in

Burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The c ...

. He was the eldest son of Seigneur Dalmas I of Semur and Aremberge of

Vergy The House of Vergy is one of the oldest French noble families, a cadet dynasty related to the 5th century Merovingian Kingdom of Burgundy, attested since the 9th century. Château de Vergy The reputedly impregnable Château de Vergy was sited on ...

, daughter of

Henry I, Duke of Burgundy Henry I (946 – 15 October 1002), called the Great, was Duke of Burgundy from 965 to his death and Count of Nevers through his first marriage. He is sometimes known as Odo-Henry or Otto-Henry (in French ''Eudes-Henri''), since his birth name wa ...

. His father wanted him to be a knight. But at the age of fifteen, he took his monastic vows and later became an abbot. Abbot Hugh built the third abbey church at Cluny, the largest structure in Europe for many centuries, with funds provided by

Ferdinand I of León Ferdinand I ( 1015 – 24 December 1065), called the Great (''el Magno''), was the count of Castile from his uncle's death in 1029 and the king of León after defeating his brother-in-law in 1037. According to tradition, he was the first to have h ...

. He was the driving force behind the Cluniac monastic movement during the last quarter of the 11th century, which had priories throughout southern France and northern Spain.

Political influence

Hugh's relationship to Ferdinand I and

Alfonso VI Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic kingdom in the Iberian peninsula. ...

of León and Castile included the release of Alfonso from his brother

Sancho The name Sancho is an Iberian name of Basque origin (Santxo, Santzo, Santso, Antzo, Sans). Sancho stems from the Latin name Sanctius.Eichler, Ernst; Hilty, Gerold; Löffler, Heinrich; Steger, Hugo; Zgusta, Ladislav: ''Namenforschung/Name Studies/ ...

's prison. His influence upon

Pope Urban II Pope Urban II ( la, Urbanus II; – 29 July 1099), otherwise known as Odo of Châtillon or Otho de Lagery, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 March 1088 to his death. He is best known for convening th ...

, who had been prior at

Cluny Cluny () is a commune in the eastern French department of Saône-et-Loire, in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. It is northwest of Mâcon. The town grew up around the Benedictine Abbey of Cluny, founded by Duke William I of Aquitaine in ...

under Hugh, made Hugh one of the most powerful and influential figures of the late 11th century. As the godfather of the Holy Roman Emperor, Henry IV, he also played a role as a mediator during the conflict between Pope Gregory VII and Henry IV, though he was not successful. Additionally, he was an active diplomat to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

on behalf of the church. He died on 28 April 1109. Many of his relics were pillaged or destroyed by the

Huguenots The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss politica ...

in 1575. After

Clementia of Burgundy Clementia of Burgundy (c. 1078 – c. 1133) was countess of Flanders by marriage to Robert II of Flanders. She acted as regent of Flanders from 1096 until 1100, while her spouse was on crusade, and in the name of their son Baldwin VII from 1111 unt ...

was married, she gave Hugh the Flemish monastery of St. Bertin. This act spread the Cluniac order north of the Loire and initiated monastic reform in Flanders. His feast day is April 29.

References

Sources

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External links

''Catholic Encyclopedia'':
St. Hugh the Great {{DEFAULTSORT:Hugh Of Cluny French abbots 1024 births 1109 deaths Cluniacs 12th-century Christian saints Medieval French saints House of Damas