St gertrude biography

German Benedictine nun and Catholic Saint

Not to be confused with Gertrude of Nivelles, also known as Saint Gertrude.

Gertrude the Great or Gertrude of Helfta (January 6, – November 17, ) was a German Benedictine nun and mystic who was a member of the Monastery of Helfta.

While herself a Benedictine, she also has strong ties to the Cistercian Order; her monastery in Helfta is currently occupied by nuns of the Cistercian Order.

Life

Little is known of the early life of Gertrude who was born on the Feast of the Epiphany, January 6, , in Eisleben, Thuringia (within the Holy Roman Empire).

St gertrude biography

At age five,^[1] she entered the monastery school at St. Mary at Helfta (variously described both as Benedictine and as Cistercian),^[2] under the direction of its abbess, Gertrude of Hackeborn.

It is speculated that her devout parents offered her as a child oblate to the church. However, given that Gertrude implies in the Herald that her parents we