Itta of

Metz Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...

O.S.B. The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, they ...

(also ''Ida'', ''Itte'' or ''Iduberga''; 592–8 May 652) was the wife of

Pepin of Landen Pepin I (also Peppin, Pipin, or Pippin) of Landen (c. 580 – 27 February 640), also called the Elder or the Old, was the Mayor of the palace of Austrasia under the Merovingian King Dagobert I from 623 to 629. He was also the Mayor for Sige ...

Mayor of the Palace Under the Merovingian dynasty, the mayor of the palace or majordomo, ( or ) was the manager of the household of the Frankish king. He was the head of the Merovingian administrative ladder and orchestrated the operation of the entire court. He ...

of the Kingdom of

Austrasia Austrasia was the northeastern kingdom within the core of the Francia, Frankish Empire during the Early Middle Ages, centring on the Meuse, Middle Rhine and the Moselle rivers. It included the original Frankish-ruled territories within what had ...

. After his death, she founded the

Abbey of Nivelles Nivelles Abbey () is a former Imperial Abbey of the Holy Roman Empire founded in 640. It is located in Nivelles, Walloon Brabant, Belgium. Foundation The abbey was founded by Itta of Metz, the widow of Pepin of Landen, Mayor of the Palace of th ...

, where she became a Colombanian

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 5 ...

along with her daughter,

Gertrude of Nivelles Gertrude of Nivelles, OSB (also spelled ''Geretrude'', ''Geretrudis'', ''Gertrud''; c. 628 – 17 March 659) was a seventh-century abbess who, with her mother Itta, founded the Abbey of Nivelles, now in Belgium. She is venerated in the Catholic ...

. Both are honored as

saint In Christianity, Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of sanctification in Christianity, holiness, imitation of God, likeness, or closeness to God in Christianity, God. However, the use of the ...

s by the Catholic Church.

Life

There is no direct record of her parents, but it has been suggested that she came from a family of

senatorial A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the eld ...

status which had originated in

Aquitaine Aquitaine (, ; ; ; ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne (), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former Regions of France, administrative region. Since 1 January 2016 it has been part of the administ ...

,Arduino, Fabio. "Sant' Ida", Santi e Beati, February 4, 2005
/ref> and was a daughter of

Arnoald Arnoald, also called Arnoldus or Arnual (c. 540/560 – c. 611), was a Bishop of Metz between 601 and 609 or 611, the successor of his uncle Agilulf. He was the son of Ansbertus, a senator, and his wife Blithilde, whose parents were Chariber ...

Bishop of Metz This is a list of bishops of the Roman Catholic diocese of Metz, which now lies in eastern France. To 500 * Clement of Metz (c. 280–300) * Celestius * Felix I * Patient * Victor I 344–346 * Victor II * Simeon * Sambace * Rufus of Metz * Ad ...

, son of Ansbertus. Her brother was

Saint Modoald Saint Modoald, also known as Romoald, was the Frankish archbishop of Trier from 626 to 645. He is the patron saint of the Reichsabtei Helmarshausen and his liturgical feast is on 12 May. Modoald was born in Aquitaine, the son of Arnulf, later Bi ...

Bishop of Trier The Diocese of Trier (), in English historically also known as ''Treves'' () from French ''Trèves'', is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic church in Germany.abbess An abbess (Latin: ''abbatissa'') is the female superior of a community of nuns in an abbey. Description In the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and Eastern Catholic), Eastern Orthodox, Coptic, Lutheran and Anglican abbeys, the mod ...

, Saint Severa. She married

, Mayor of the Merovingian Royal Palace. After Pepin's death in 640, Itta and her daughter, Gertrude, withdrew from the capital for a life of religious reflection. Later, around 647, on the advice of

Amandus Amandus ( 584 – 679), commonly called Saint Amand, was a bishop of Tongeren-Maastricht and one of the catholic missionaries of Flanders. He is venerated as a saint, particularly in France and Belgium. Life The chief source of details of his ...

, the

Bishop of Maastricht The Roman Catholic Diocese of Maastricht (Latin Traiectum ad Mosam) was a Roman Catholic jurisdiction in parts of present Netherlands (including the see Maastricht) and Belgium, which has been nominally revived as a Latin titular bishopric. Histo ...

, she founded the

. The abbey was originally just a community of nuns, but it later became a

double monastery A double monastery (also dual monastery or double house) is a monastery combining separate communities of monks and of nuns, joined in one institution to share one church and other facilities. The practice is believed to have started in the East ...

when the nuns were joined by a group of Irish monks who offered them support in the operations of the abbey. She might have appointed her daughter, Gertrude, as its first

abbess An abbess (Latin: ''abbatissa'') is the female superior of a community of nuns in an abbey. Description In the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and Eastern Catholic), Eastern Orthodox, Coptic, Lutheran and Anglican abbeys, the mod ...

, while she herself lived there as a simple

, assisting the young abbess by her advice.Ott, Michael. "St. Gertrude of Nivelles." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 6. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. 26 December 2015 Itta died at the abbey on 8 May 652.

Children

Itta had another daughter by Pepin, Abbess Begga of Andenne, who had married

Ansegisel Ansegisel (c. 602 or 610 – murdered before 679 or 662) was the younger son of Saint Arnulf, bishop of Metz. Life He served King Sigebert III of Austrasia (634–656) as ''domesticus''. He was killed sometime before 679, slain in a feud by his ...

, son of

Arnulf 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. G ...

prior to joining the monastery. By Begga, she is the grandmother of

Pepin of Herstal Pepin II (c. 635 – 16 December 714), commonly known as Pepin of Herstal, was a Franks, Frankish statesman and military leader who was the de facto ruler of Francia as the Mayor of the Palace from 680 until his death. He took the title Duke ...

and one of the matriarchs of the great

Carolingian The Carolingian dynasty ( ; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charles Martel and his grandson Charlemagne, descendants of the Arnulfing and Pippinid c ...

family. Her sons were Grimoald, later Mayor of the Palace, and father of King

Childebert the Adopted Childebert III the Adopted (''Childebertus Adoptivus'') was a Frankish king. Childebert was a son of the Mayor of the Palace Grimoald the Elder. He was thus a grandson of Pepin of Landen. He was adopted by King Sigebert III and Queen Chimne ...

; Itta's second son

Bavo Saint Bavo of Ghent (also known as Bavon, Allowin, Bavonius, Baaf; AD 622–659) is a Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox saint. He exchanged a dissolute lifestyle for that of a missionary under the guidance of Saint Amand. Vita Bavo was born ...

(or Allowin), became a

hermit A hermit, also known as an eremite (adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions. Description In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Chr ...

and was later

canonized Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of sa ...

. Both her daughters were also canonized, as was she. Her

feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context does n ...

is celebrated on 8 May.

Patronage

Itta is honoured as the

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

of the French village of

Itteville Itteville () is a commune in the Essonne department in Île-de-France in northern France. Itteville's twin town has been Newick in the United Kingdom since 1988. The distance between both towns is . Origin of the town name The original name ...

, which was founded on the site of a farm which she had established.

Family

References

Sources

* Alban Butler's ''Lives of the saints'', edited, revised and supplemented by Thurston and Attwater. Christian Classics, Westminster, Maryland. {{Authority control 592 births 652 deaths People from Metz 7th-century Frankish nuns 7th-century Christian nuns Pippinids 7th-century Frankish saints Christian female saints of the Middle Ages Belgian Roman Catholic saints Colombanian saints Mothers of monarchs