Kunigunde, Countess of Weimar-Orlamünde (1303 – 29 April 1382) was a German noblewoman and nun. After the death of her husband, she served as the Abbess of the Convent of the Celestial Throne in

Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...

. In

German folklore German folklore is the folk tradition which has developed in Germany over a number of centuries. Seeing as Germany was divided into numerous polities for most of its history, this term might both refer to the folklore of Germany proper and of all ...

she has been associated with the

Weiße Frauen In German folklore, the Weiße Frauen (, meaning White Women) are elf-like spirits which may derive from Germanic paganism in the form of legends of light elves (Old Norse: ''Ljósálfar''). The Netherlands, Dutch Witte Wieven are traceable at le ...

Hohenzollern The House of Hohenzollern (, ; , ; ) is a formerly royal (and from 1871 to 1918, imperial) German dynasty whose members were variously princes, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern, Brandenburg, Prussia, the German Empire, and Romania. ...

Biography

Kunigunde von Orlamünde was born in 1303. She was the first child of Ulrich I, Landgrave of Leuchtenberg. In 1321 she married Otto VI, Count of

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state (Germany), German state of Thuringia, in Central Germany (cultural area), Central Germany between Erfurt to the west and Jena to the east, southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together w ...

Orlamünde Orlamünde () is a small town in the Saale-Holzland district, in Thuringia, Germany. It is part of the ''Verwaltungsgemeinschaft'' ("collective municipality") Südliches Saaletal. Geography The town centre stretches along the steep banks of th ...

. Their marriage produced no children. She and her husband adopted a daughter, Podika von Schaumnerg, who married Poske Ritter von Schweritz in 1341. Kinigunde's husband died in 1340, leaving her with a vast inheritance. She used her inheritance to fund the Convent of the Celestial Throne, a

Cistercian The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

monastery in

, where she later entered into service as the abbess. According to legends, she was the founder of the convent, although the in reality it was founded half a century earlier. In 1342 she did give an endowment to the convent.

Legend

Kunigunde has been associated with the ghost story of the

. According to legend, Kunigunde fell in love with Albrecht the Fair, a son of

Frederick IV, Burgrave of Nuremberg Frederick IV (19 May 1332) was Burgrave of Nuremberg from 1300, until his death in 1332. He was the younger son of Burgrave Frederick III from his second marriage with the Ascanian princess Helene of Saxony. Life He succeeded to the burgrav ...

. He proclaimed that he would marry her if "four eyes did not stand in the way", referring to his parents who did not approve of the match. Kunigunde mistook his message and thought the eyes referred to her two children, a son and a daughter. She stabbed their eyes out with a needle, killing both children. Albrecht, horrified by her actions, refused to marry her. Devastated, she made a pilgrimage to the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Geography * Vatican City, an independent city-state surrounded by Rome, Italy * Vatican Hill, in Rome, namesake of Vatican City * Ager Vaticanus, an alluvial plain in Rome * Vatican, an unincorporated community in the ...

to obtain

absolution Absolution is a theological term for the forgiveness imparted by ordained Priest#Christianity, Christian priests and experienced by Penance#Christianity, Christian penitents. It is a universal feature of the historic churches of Christendom, alth ...

for her sins from the Pope. As

penance Penance is any act or a set of actions done out of contrition for sins committed, as well as an alternative name for the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Oriental Orthodox sacrament of Reconciliation or Confession. The word ''penance'' derive ...

, the Pope ordered her to build a monastery and then enter into consecrated life. Some versions state that she was sentenced to life in prison for murder and others that she died of exhaustion while on pilgrimage. The legend ends with her as a ghost, haunting the castles of the

House of Hohenzollern The House of Hohenzollern (, ; , ; ) is a formerly royal (and from 1871 to 1918, imperial) German dynasty whose members were variously princes, Prince-elector, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern Castle, Hohenzollern, Margraviate of Bran ...

. Historians refute the legend, as Kunigunde von Orlamünde was childless.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Orlamunde, Kunigunde von 1303 births 1382 deaths Cistercian abbesses German Cistercians Countesses in Germany German Roman Catholic abbesses German ghosts