Saint Aurelia of Strasbourg was a 4th-century

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

, whose tomb in

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

became the centre of a popular

cult In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal. This ...

in 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

According to the legend, Aurelia accompanied

Saint Ursula Saint Ursula (Latin for 'little female bear', german: link=no, Heilige Ursula) is a legendary Romano-British Christian saint who died on 21 October 383. Her feast day in the pre-1970 General Roman Calendar is 21 October. There is little infor ...

and the eleven thousand virgins from Roman Britain to

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

, where they were favourably received by Aquilin, bishop of the place. From Cologne they traveled to

Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...

. From Basel the travelers descended the Rhine to Strasbourg where St Aurelia succumbed to a violent fever, dying after a few days. Three virgins were left to care for her. She was particularly invoked against fevers in the church that bears her name. Her three companions lived many years in the same place and were buried there. Some centuries later their tomb was opened and their bodies were found completely intact, marked with titles bearing their names. This legend is reproduced in the current

breviary A breviary (Latin: ''breviarium'') is a liturgical book used in Christianity for praying the canonical hours, usually recited at seven fixed prayer times. Historically, different breviaries were used in the various parts of Christendom, such a ...

of the Diocese of Strasbourg. Grandidier, who questions the authenticity of the legend, observed that the cult of Saint Aurelia was already very popular in Strasbourg by the 9th century. The church of Sainte Aurélie in Strasbourg is supposed to have been built over the crypt in which the tomb of Saint Aurelia was situated. In 1524,

Martin Bucer Martin Bucer ( early German: ''Martin Butzer''; 11 November 1491 – 28 February 1551) was a German Protestant reformer based in Strasbourg who influenced Lutheran, Calvinist, and Anglican doctrines and practices. Bucer was originally a me ...

(a Protestant), soon after his appointment as pastor of the church, instigated members of the gardeners' guild to open the tomb and remove the bones, justifying this on the grounds that the tomb had become an object of idolatry.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aurelia of Strasbourg 4th-century Christian saints Year of death unknown Year of birth unknown Late Ancient Christian female saints History of Strasbourg