Solveig Rafnsdóttir (1470–1561 or 1563), was the last
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
Reynistaðarklaustur Reynistaðarklaustur ( Modern Icelandic: ; Old Norse: ) or Reynistathir abbey was a Catholic monastery in Iceland, belonging to the Order of Saint Benedict and active from 1295 until 1562, when it was closed down during the Icelandic Reformation I ...
, an Abbey of the
Order of Saint Benedict
The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict ( la, Ordo Sancti Benedicti, abbreviated as OSB), are a Christian monasticism, monastic Religious order (Catholic), religious order of the Catholic Church following the Rule of Saint Benedic ...
on Iceland.
Life
Solveig Rafnsdóttir was the daughter of the elderman of
Iceland
Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
, Hrafn Brandsson, and Margrét Eyjólfsdóttir and the sister of the priest ocBrand Hrafnsson. She became a member of the
Order of Saint Benedict
The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict ( la, Ordo Sancti Benedicti, abbreviated as OSB), are a Christian monasticism, monastic Religious order (Catholic), religious order of the Catholic Church following the Rule of Saint Benedic ...
in the abbey of
Reynistaðarklaustur Reynistaðarklaustur ( Modern Icelandic: ; Old Norse: ) or Reynistathir abbey was a Catholic monastery in Iceland, belonging to the Order of Saint Benedict and active from 1295 until 1562, when it was closed down during the Icelandic Reformation I ...
, one of only two
convents on Iceland open to women, in 1493, and became its abbess in 1508. She was the manager of significant lands on Iceland through her position.
During the
Protestant Reformation
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
, the estates of the convent was confiscated and the convent was closed and banned from accepting any new novices. Solveig Rafnsdóttir lost her authority, but she and the other nuns were allowed to remain in the former convent for life. She died in 1561 or 1563.
See also
*
Halldóra Sigvaldadóttir
Halldóra Sigvaldadóttir (died after 1544) was the last abbess of the Kirkjubæjar Abbey on Iceland.
Halldóra Sigvaldadóttir was the daughter of Sigvalda Gunnarssonar langalífs, who had a secular position within the church. She is described as ...
References
*„„Reynistaðarklaustur“. Tímarit Hins íslenska bókmenntafélags, 8. árg. 1887.“,
*„„Reynistaðarklaustur“. Sunnudagsblað Tímans, 6. ágúst 1967.“,
*Sigríður Gunnarsdóttir: Nunnuklaustrið að Reynistað. Smárit Byggðasafns Skagfirðinga.
15th-century Icelandic women
16th-century Icelandic women
1470 births
1563 deaths
Benedictine abbesses
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