Saint Begga (also Begue, Begge) (b. 613 – d. 17 December 693 AD) was the daughter of
Pepin of Landen,
mayor of the palace of
Austrasia
Austrasia was a territory which formed the north-eastern section of the Merovingian Kingdom of the Franks during the 6th to 8th centuries. It was centred on the Meuse, Middle Rhine and the Moselle rivers, and was the original territory of the ...
, and his wife
Itta of Metz. She is also the grandmother of
Charles Martel
Charles Martel ( – 22 October 741) was a Frankish political and military leader who, as Duke and Prince of the Franks and Mayor of the Palace, was the de facto ruler of Francia from 718 until his death. He was a son of the Frankish statesm ...
, who is the grandfather of
Charlemagne
Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first E ...
.
Life
The daughter of
Pepin of Landen and his wife,
Itta, Begga was the older sister of St
Gertrude of Nivelles. She married
Ansegisel, son of
Arnulf, Bishop of Metz
Arnulf of Metz ( 582 – 645) was a Frankish bishop of Metz and advisor to the Merovingian court of Austrasia. He later retired to the Abbey of Remiremont. In French he is also known as Arnoul or Arnoulf. In English he is known as Arnold.
Ge ...
, and had three children:
Pepin of Heristal,
Martin of Laon, and Clotilda of
Heristal, who married
Theuderic III of the Franks. Ansegisel was killed sometime before 679, slain in a feud by his enemy Gundewin. Begga made a pilgrimage to Rome and upon her return, she took the
veil
A veil is an article of clothing or hanging cloth that is intended to cover some part of the head or face, or an object of some significance. Veiling has a long history in European, Asian, and African societies. The practice has been prominent ...
, she had seven churches built at
Andenne
Andenne (; wa, Andene) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Namur, Belgium.
On January 1, 2006, Andenne had a total population of 25,240. The total area is 86.17 km² which gives a population density of 292 ...
on the Meuse. There she spent the rest of her days as abbess. She was buried in Saint Begga's Collegiate Church in Andenne.
Veneration
She is commemorated on 17 December.
Some hold that the
Beguine movement which came to light in the 12th century was actually founded by St Begga; and the church in the beguinage of
Lier, Belgium, has a statue of St Begga standing above the inscription: ''St. Begga, our foundress''. The Lier beguinage dates from the 13th century.
Another popular theory, however, claims that the Beguines derived their name from that of the priest
Lambert le Bègue, under whose protection the witness and ministry of the Beguines flourished.
[McDonnell, ''Beguines and Beghards'', pp. 179, n. 51, & 430-31]
See also
*
Saint Begga, patron saint archive
Footnotes
References
*Andenn
History of Andenne, Belgium* Attwater, Donald & John, Catherine Rachel. ''The Penguin Dictionary of Saints''. 3rd edition. New York: Penguin Books, 1993;
Saint Begga profile catholic.org
* Baix, F. "Begge," in ''Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques'', VII, ed. A. Baudrillart (Paris, 1934), cols. 441-48
* Heller, J., ed. ''Genealogiae ducum Brabantiae'' (Monumenta Germaniae Historica; SS, XXV), pp. 385–413, ref Genealogia ampliata, 1270
* Rousseau, Félix. "Le monastère mérovingien d'Andenne", ''À travers l'histoire de Namur, du Namurois et de la Wallonie. Recueil d'articles de Félix Rousseau (n.p., 1977), pp. 279–313
External links
Saint Begga at Saints.sqpn.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Begga
693 deaths
Belgian saints
Beguines and Beghards
Christian royal saints
Christian female saints of the Middle Ages
7th-century Frankish women
Pippinids
7th-century Frankish saints
People from Andenne
613 births