Hemma of Gurk (german: Hemma von Gurk; 27 June 1045),29 June according t

also called Emma of Gurk ( sl, Ema Krška), was a noblewoman and founder of several churches and monasteries in the

Duchy of Carinthia The Duchy of Carinthia (german: Herzogtum Kärnten; sl, Vojvodina Koroška) was a duchy located in southern Austria and parts of northern Slovenia. It was separated from the Duchy of Bavaria in 976, and was the first newly created Imperial Sta ...

. Buried at

Gurk Cathedral Gurk Cathedral (german: Dom zu Gurk, officially ''Pfarr- und ehemalige Domkirche Mariae Himmelfahrt'', sl, Bazilika v Krki) is a Romanesque pillar basilica in Gurk, in the Austrian state of Carinthia. The former cathedral and current co-cathed ...

since 1174, she was beatified on 21 November 1287 and canonised on 5 January 1938 by

Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI ( it, Pio XI), born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti (; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939), was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 to his death in February 1939. He was the first sovereign of Vatican City fro ...

. Her feast day is 27 June. Hemma is venerated as a

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 ...

by both the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via ...

, and as patroness of the current

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n state of

Carinthia Carinthia (german: Kärnten ; sl, Koroška ) is the southernmost States of Austria, Austrian state, in the Eastern Alps, and is noted for its mountains and lakes. The main language is German language, German. Its regional dialects belong to t ...

Biography

Little is known about Hemma's descent; she was probably born between 995 and 1000 (other sources mention 980 AD), her ancestors were related to the Bavarian

Luitpoldings The Luitpoldings were a medieval dynasty which ruled the German stem duchy of Bavaria from some time in the late ninth century off and on until 985. Origins The descent of the East Frankish Luitpoldings has not been conclusively established. The ...

and thus to Emperor Henry II. Her grandmother Imma (''Emma'') was vested with

market Market is a term used to describe concepts such as: *Market (economics), system in which parties engage in transactions according to supply and demand *Market economy *Marketplace, a physical marketplace or public market Geography *Märket, an ...

and

minting Minting is a village and civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. The village is situated south from the A158 road. The population (including Gautby) at the 2011 census was 286. Minting Priory was located here. Mi ...

rights at her estates in Lieding (today part of

Straßburg 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 ...

) by Emperor

Otto II Otto II (955 – 7 December 983), called the Red (''der Rote''), was Holy Roman Emperor from 973 until his death in 983. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto II was the youngest and sole surviving son of Otto the Great and Adelaide of Italy. ...

in 975. The bestowal raised objections by the

Archbishop of Salzburg The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Salzburg ( la, Archidioecesis Salisburgensis) is an archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in Austria. The archdiocese is one of two Austrian archdioceses, serving alongside the Archdiocese of ...

and the privileges were later transferred to

Gurk, Carinthia Gurk ( sl, Krka) is an Austrian market town and former episcopal see in the District of Sankt Veit an der Glan, Carinthia. Geography The community of Gurk is surrounded by alpine meadows and vast high forests. It marks the center of the sparse ...

. According to her

hagiography A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies migh ...

, Hemma was a member of a noble dynasty descending from

Pilštanj Pilštanj (, german: Peilenstein) is a village in the Municipality of Kozje in eastern Slovenia. The area is part of the historical Lower Styria, Styria region. The municipality is included in the Savinja Statistical Region. The parish church in ...

(''Peilenstein'') in the

Mark an der Sann The (German for "March on the Savinja"; other designations and variations of the name include , (or ), () and , as well as simply – Savinja valley) was a border march of the Holy Roman Empire, in the territory of present-day Slovenia. It was ...

(in present-day

Slovenian Styria Styria ( sl, Štajerska), also Slovenian Styria (''Slovenska Štajerska'') or Lower Styria (''Spodnja Štajerska''; german: Untersteiermark), is a traditional region in northeastern Slovenia, comprising the southern third of the former Duchy of ...

) and was brought up at the

Imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texa ...

court in

Bamberg Bamberg (, , ; East Franconian: ''Bambärch'') is a town in Upper Franconia, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main. The town dates back to the 9th century, when its name was derived from the nearby ' castle. C ...

by Empress Saint Cunigunde. Hemma married the Carinthian count William II of

Friesach Friesach ( sl, Breže) is a historic town in the Sankt Veit an der Glan district of Carinthia, Austria. First mentioned in an 860 deed, it is known as the oldest town in Carinthia. Geography Location Friesach covers an area of 120.83 km2 a ...

, mentioned as

margrave Margrave was originally the medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or of a kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain feudal families in the Emp ...

an der Sann in 1016, by whom she had two sons, Hartwig and William. Her husband had received vast estates on the

Savinja The Savinja () is a river in northeast Slovenia which flows mostly in the Upper and Lower Savinja Valley ( sl, Zgornja in Spodnja Savinjska dolina) and through the cities of Celje and Laško. The Savinja is the main river of the Savinja Alps (Sl ...

(''Sann'') river from the hands of the Emperor. Both her sons and her husband were murdered, Margrave William II probably in 1036 by the deposed duke Adalbero of Carinthia in revenge. Hemma became wealthy through inheritance upon the death of her husband and sons. Countess Hemma used her great wealth for the benefit of the poor and was already venerated as a saint during her lifetime. In addition, she founded ten churches throughout present-day

. In 1043 she founded the

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 ...

double monastery of

Gurk Abbey Gurk Abbey (german: Stift Gurk) was a short-lived nunnery in Gurk, Carinthia (in present-day Austria), founded in 1043 by Saint Hemma of Gurk. The monastery arose at the site of a former Celtic temple, dedicated to the Gallo-Roman goddess Epona. ...

, where she withdrew during the last years of her life. After her death, Gurk Abbey was dissolved by the

, Gebhard, who instead used the funds to set up the

Diocese of Gurk-Klagenfurt The Roman Catholic Diocese of Gurk-Klagenfurt (german: Diözese Gurk-Klagenfurt, sl, Krška škofija) is a Catholic diocese covering the Austrian state of Carinthia. It is part of the ecclesiastical province of Salzburg. Though named after Gur ...

in 1072.

Admont Abbey Admont Abbey (german: Stift Admont) is a Order of St. Benedict, Benedictine monastery located on the Enns River in the town of Admont, Austria. The oldest remaining monastery in Styria, Admont Abbey contains the largest monastic library in the ...

, another Benedictine foundation in Austria, was founded in 1074 by the same Gebhard, and also owes its existence to Hemma's wealth. Since 1174 Hemma's relics have been buried in the crypt of

Emma pilgrimage

Saint Hemma is the patron saint of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Gurk The Roman Catholic Diocese of Gurk-Klagenfurt (german: Diözese Gurk-Klagenfurt, sl, Krška škofija) is a Catholic diocese covering the Austrian state of Carinthia. It is part of the ecclesiastical province of Salzburg. Though named after Gurk ...

and her intercession is sought for childbirth and diseases of the eye. She is venerated not only in Carinthia (the Austrian state coterminous with the Diocese of Gurk), but also in neighboring

Styria Styria (german: Steiermark ; Serbo-Croatian and sl, ; hu, Stájerország) is a state (''Bundesland'') in the southeast of Austria. With an area of , Styria is the second largest state of Austria, after Lower Austria. Styria is bordered to ...

(another Austrian state) and

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

. From about 300 years ago, the pious and those seeking assistance have been coming to her tomb in Gurk Cathedral, travelling from

Carniola Carniola ( sl, Kranjska; , german: Krain; it, Carniola; hu, Krajna) is a historical region that comprised parts of present-day Slovenia. Although as a whole it does not exist anymore, Slovenes living within the former borders of the region sti ...

over the

Loibl Pass The Loibl Pass (german: Loiblpass) or Ljubelj Pass ( sl, prelaz Ljubelj) is a high mountain pass in the Karawanks chain of the Southern Limestone Alps, linking Austria with Slovenia. The Loibl Pass road is the shortest connection between the Cari ...

. This pilgrimage took place every year on the fourth Sunday after

Easter Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...

, but fell out of use as a result of the political circumstances of the 20th century. In recent years, however, the routes of pilgrimage from Slovenia and Styria to Gurk have gradually reopened and are becoming increasingly used.

Notes

References

* *Messner, Sepp, 1995: ''Hemma von Gurk. Wesentliches kurz gefaßt''. Kolbnitz: S. Messner. *Prenner-Walzl, Irene Maria, 1987: ''Das Leben der Heiligen Hemma von Gurk und dessen künstlerische Ausdeutung im Laufe der Geschichte''. (Thesis) University of Graz. *Till, Josef, 1999: ''Hemmas Welt. Hemma von Gurk - ein Frauenschicksal im Mittelalter''. Klagenfurt/Celovec: Hermagoras/Mohorjeva. *Tropper, Peter Günther (ed.), 1988: ''Hemma von Gurk''. (Exhibition catalogue) Carinthia, Klagenfurt. *Vieser, Dolores, 1999: ''Hemma von Gurk''. Carinthia, Klagenfurt. *

External links

Biography, Catholic Online
*

Biography, Catholic Church of Carinthia website

{{Authority control 990s births 1045 deaths Austrian Roman Catholic saints German Roman Catholic saints Female saints of medieval Germany 11th-century Christian saints Canonizations by Pope Pius XI 10th-century people of the Holy Roman Empire 11th-century women of the Holy Roman Empire 10th-century German nobility 11th-century German nobility 10th-century German women 11th-century German women Medieval Austrian saints