View source for Saint Walpurga

{{Short description|Anglo-Saxon missionary (c. 710 – 777/779)}}
{{redirect|St. Walburg}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox saint
|honorific_prefix=[[Saint]]
|name=Walpurga
|birth_date={{circa|710}}
|death_date=25 February 777 or 779
|birth_place=[[Crediton]], [[Devon]]shire,<ref name="Morgan2008">{{Cite web|title=Local landmarks: St Walburge's|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/lancashire/content/articles/2008/08/15/landmarks_st_walburges.shtml|access-date=2021-12-09|work=BBC|date=15 August 2008|last=Morgan|first=Ann|language=en-gb}}</ref><!--a few sources appear to claim Sussex<ref>{{Cite book|title=[[The New International Encyclopedia]]|publisher=Dodd, Mead and Company|year=1916|edition=2|volume=23|page=300|oclc=1157165990|url=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/The_new_international_encyclopaedia_..._%28Vol._23%2C_VALJEAN-Z%29_%28IA_newinternational23unse%29.pdf}}</ref> or https://books.google.com/books?id=jAcoAAAAYAAJ--> [[Wessex]]
|death_place=[[Heidenheim (Mittelfranken)|Heidenheim]], [[Francia]]
|feast_day=25 February<br />1 May (relocation of her relics)
|venerated_in = [[Catholic Church]]<br />[[Lutheran Church]]es<br />[[Eastern Orthodox Church]]<br />[[Anglican Communion]] 
|image= Heilige Walburga.jpg
|imagesize=
|caption=Painting by the [[Master of Meßkirch]],<br/>c. 1535–40.
|titles=
|beatified_date=
|beatified_place=
|beatified_by=
|canonized_date=870
|canonized_place=
|canonized_by=[[Pope Adrian II]]
|attributes=
|patronage=[[Eichstätt]], [[Antwerp]], [[Zutphen]] and other towns
|major_shrine=
|suppressed_date=
|issues=
|prayer=
|prayer_attrib=
}}
'''Walpurga''' or '''Walburga'''{{efn|Also spelled '''Valderburg''' or '''Guibor'''. Other spellings: '''Valborg''' (the Swedish name for her), '''Walburge''', '''Valpuri''', '''Auboué''', '''Avangour''', '''Avongourg''', '''Falbourg''', '''Gaubourg''', '''Gualbourg''', '''Valburg''', '''Valpurge''', '''Vaubouer''', '''Vaubourg''', '''Walbourg''', '''Walpurd''', '''Warpurg'''.  She is also known by the seemingly unrelated names '''Perche''' and '''Eucharis'''.}} ({{langx|ang|Wealdburg}}; {{langx|la|Valpurga, Walpurga, Walpurgis}}; {{langx|sv|Valborg}}; {{circa}} 710{{snd}}25 February 777 or 779) was an [[Anglo-Saxon mission]]ary to the [[Frankish Empire]]. She was canonized on 1 May c. 870 by [[Pope Adrian II]].  [[Walpurgis Night|Saint Walpurgis Night]] (or "Sankt Walpurgisnacht") is the name for the eve of her feast day in the Medieval period, which coincided with [[May Day]]; her feast is no longer celebrated on that day, but the name is still used for May Eve.

== Early life ==
Walpurga was born in [[Dumnonia]], roughly corresponding to modern [[Devon]], during the period it was becoming incorporated into [[Anglo-Saxon England]]. She was the daughter of [[Richard the Pilgrim]], a likely [[Celtic Britons|Britonnic]] underking of the West Saxons, and of [[Wuna of Wessex]], and had two brothers, [[Willibald]] and [[Winibald]].<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://catholicsaints.info/a-life-of-saint-walburge-by-father-thomas-meyrick-sj/|title=A Life of Saint Walburge |first=Thomas |last=Meyrick |date=1873 |via=catholicsaints.info|accessdate=21 December 2022}}</ref>

== Religious career ==
[[File:Statue of St Walpurga .jpg|thumb|Statue of Walburgis at Walburgis Kapelle at [[Kirchehrenbach]], Germany]]
In 721, Richard set out on a pilgrimage to [[Rome]] with his two sons. Before leaving he entrusted Walburga, then 11 years old, to the abbess of the [[double monastery]] at [[Wimborne Minster (church)|Wimborne Abbey]] in [[Dorset]].<ref name=abbey/> She had been there but a year when she received word that her father had died at [[Lucca]]. After seeing to their father's burial in the [[Basilica of San Frediano]], her brothers completed the pilgrimage to Rome, where they both became seriously ill. ([[Hygeburg]], who wrote the ''Vita S. Willibaldi'', says they contracted the Black Death; Francis Mershman suggests [[malaria]]).<ref name=Mershman>{{cite book|chapter-url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15644c.htm |last=Mershman |first=Francis |chapter=Sts. Willibald and Winnebald |title=The Catholic Encyclopedia |volume=15 |location=New York |publisher=Robert Appleton Company |date=1912 |access-date=24 April 2019}}{{PD-notice}}</ref>

After recovering, Winibald, who was not of a particularly strong constitution, remained in Rome to pursue further studies, while Willibald set out for the Holy Land. After about seven years of travelling, Willibald returned to Italy and became a monk at [[Monte Cassino]]. In 730, Winibald returned to England and engaged a third brother and several amongst his kindred and acquaintances to accompany him on his journey back to Rome to begin a monastic life there.<ref name=Stevens>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/oneyearbookofsai00stev/page/64/mode/2up |last=Stevens |first=Clifford J. |title=The One Year Book of Saints |isbn=978-0-87973-417-6 |page=64 |date=1989 |publisher=Our Sunday Visitor}}</ref>

During this time Walpurga remained at Wimborne where she was educated, and eventually became a nun. The nuns of Wimborne were skilled at copying and ornamenting manuscripts; and celebrated for [[Opus Anglicanum]], a fine needlework utilising gold and silver threads on rich [[velvet]] or linen, often decorated with [[Gemstone|jewels]] and [[pearl]]s. Such English embroidery was in great demand across Europe.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Brownlow |first=Canon|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QmwPAAAAYAAJ&dq=st+lioba&pg=PA234|title=Transactions of the Devonshire Association for the Advancement of Science, Literature and Art|date=1891|publisher=Devonshire Press |volume=23 |chapter=The Brother and Sister of Saint Willibald|page=234}}</ref> She spent 26 years as a member of the community.<ref name=casanova/>

In 737, Walpurga's uncle (her mother's brother), [[Saint Boniface|Boniface]], was in Rome and recruited his nephews to assist him in his religious work in Germany. Winibald arrived in [[Thuringia]] on 30 November 740, and after being ordained a priest,<ref name=Mershman/> was placed in charge of seven churches.<ref>{{Cite book|chapter-url=https://catholicsaints.info/butlers-lives-of-the-saints-saint-winebald-abbot-and-confessor/|first=Alban |last=Butler |chapter=Saint Winebald, Abbot and Confessor |title=Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Principal Saints |date=1866 |via=catholicsaints.info|accessdate=21 December 2022}}</ref> Willibald, upon arriving at [[Eichstätt]], was ordained by Boniface on 22 July 741 and began missionary work in the area.

Walpurga then travelled with her brothers, Willibald and Winibald, to [[Francia]] (now [[Württemberg]] and [[Franconia]]) to assist Boniface in evangelizing the still-pagan Germans. Some sources claimed that she wrote her brother Willibald's ''[[Biography|vita]]'' and an account in [[Latin]] of his travels in [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]],<ref name=casanova /> though these were later determined to have been written by [[Hygeburg|Hugeburc of Heidenheim]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Head |first=Pauline |title=Who is the Nun from Heidenheim? A Study of Hugeburc's 'Vita Willibaldi' |journal=Medium Ævum |date=2002 |volume=71 |issue=1 |pages=29 |doi=10.2307/43630387 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/43630387|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

Walpurga became a nun in the [[double monastery]] of [[Heidenheim am Hahnenkamm]], which was founded by Willibald. He appointed her as his successor and following his death in 751, Walpurga became the abbess of the monastery.<ref name=abbey /> Upon Winibald's death in 760 she also succeeded him as superintendent of the Heidenheim monastery.<ref name="EB1911">{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Walpurgis, St|volume=28|pages=290–291}}</ref>

== Death ==
Walpurga died on 25 February 777 or 779 (the records are unclear) and was buried at Heidenheim; the day carries her name in the Catholic church calendar. In 870, Walpurga's remains were translated to [[Eichstätt]]. In [[Finland]], [[Sweden]], and [[Bavaria]], her [[feast day]] commemorates the transfer of her relics on 1 May.

== Veneration ==
[[File:Brugge - Sint-Walburgakerk 3.jpg|thumb|left|The [[St. Walburga Church (Bruges)|St. Walburga Church]] in [[Bruges]] was originally a [[Jesuit]] church]]
Walpurga's feast day is 25 February, but the day of her canonization, 1 May (possibly 870), was also celebrated during the high medieval period, especially in the 11th century under [[Anno II, Archbishop of Cologne]], so that [[Walpurgis Night]] is the eve of [[May Day]], celebrated in continental folklore with dancing.

At Eichstätt, her bones were placed in a rocky niche, which allegedly began to exude a miraculously therapeutic oil, which drew pilgrims to her shrine. The bituminous oil, called Walpurgis oil, was said to exude from her bones (especially from October through February) and was regarded as being efficacious against disease.<ref name="EB1911"/>

The two earliest [[Hagiology|miracle narratives]] of Walpurga are the ''Miracula S. Walburgae Manheimensis'' by Wolfhard von [[Herrieden]], datable to 895 or 896, and the late 10th-century ''Vita secunda'' linked with the name of Aselbod, bishop of Utrecht. In the 14th-century ''Vita S. Walburgae'' by Phillipp von Rathsamhaüsen, bishop of Eichstätt (1306–22), the miracle of the tempest-tossed boat is introduced, which [[Peter Paul Rubens]] painted in 1610 for the altarpiece for the church of St. Walpurgis, Antwerp.{{efn|The altarpiece is now disassembled.}}<ref>{{cite journal|first=Susanne |last=Heiland |title=Two Rubens Paintings Rehabilitated |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/876036 |journal=The Burlington Magazine |volume=111 |issue=796 |date=July 1969 |pages=421–427}}</ref> In addition, the 19th-century [[John Henry Newman|Cardinal Newman]] declared the exuded oil to be a credible miracle.<ref name="EB1911"/>

[[File:WalbKont1.JPG|thumb|right|Statue in [[Contern]] church.]]

The earliest representation of Walpurga is in the early 11th-century [[Hitda Codex]], made in [[Cologne]], and depicts her holding stylized stalks of grain. In other depictions, the object has been called a [[Palm branch (symbol)|palm branch]] which is not correct, since Walpurga was not [[martyr]]ed. The grain attribute has been interpreted as an instance of a Christian saint (Walpurga) coming to represent an older pagan concept; in this case, the pagan [[Corn Mother|Grain Mother]]. Peasant farmers fashioned her replica in a [[corn dolly]] at harvest time and told tales to explain Saint Walpurga's presence in the grain sheaf.<ref>Several examples and bibliographical notes are given in {{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/goddessobscuredt0000berg |first=Pamela C. |last=Berger |title=The Goddess Obscured: Transformation of the Grain Protectress from Goddess to Saint |date=1985 |pages=61–64}}</ref>

== Patronage ==
Walpurga is the patroness of [[Eichstätt]] and Weilburg, Germany; [[Oudenarde]], [[Veurne]], [[Antwerp]], Belgium; [[Tiel]] (demolished), [[Groningen]] (demolished), [[Arnhem]], [[Amby (Maastricht)|Amby]] and [[Zutphen]] the Netherlands; and she is invoked as special patroness against hydrophobia ([[rabies]]), in storms, and also by sailors.<ref name=casanova>{{Cite book |last=Casanova |first=Gertrude |chapter-url=https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15526b.htm|title=The Catholic Encyclopedia |chapter=St. Walburga |date=1912 |volume=15 |via=www.newadvent.org|accessdate=21 December 2022}}</ref>

== Legacy ==
St. Walburga's Abbey is located at Eichstätt, Bavaria. A second Benedictine Abbey of St. Walburga is located in [[Virginia Dale, Colorado]], near the Wyoming border. The abbey in Colorado is home to approximately 20 contemplative Catholic nuns and also has a retreat center.<ref name=abbey>[http://www.walburga.org/ Abbey of St. Walburga]</ref> [[Benedictine Sisters of St. Walburg Monastery|St. Walburg Monastery]] in [[Covington, Kentucky]], is a community of Benedictine sisters who arrived in Northern Kentucky in 1859. Their early teaching efforts later resulted in the establishment and development of Villa Madonna Academy and [[Thomas More University]].

The [[Church of St Walburge, Preston|Church of St. Walburge]], a [[Catholic]] church in [[Preston, Lancashire|Preston]], [[Lancashire]], England, is a church famous for its spire. At {{convert|309|feet}}, the spire is the tallest of any parish church in England, with only the spires of [[Salisbury Cathedral|Salisbury]] and [[Norwich Cathedral]]s reaching higher.<ref name="Morgan2008"/>

The [[St. Walburg's Hospital]], a 220-bed hospital in southern Tanzania was built in 1959.

== St. Walburga Church in Antwerp (Belgium) ==

[[File:Antwerpen Groenplaats Rubensstandbeeld - 269005 - onroerenderfgoed.jpg|thumb|Rubens, Groenplaats ]]
Central in the first fortified city of [[Antwerp]], from the 11th century, was the church dedicated to Saint Walburga. Under French occupation in 1798, the church was confiscated and sold; it served as a warehouse. In 1816, the Dutch government confiscated the church building, and in 1817, it was demolished. The city mayor and aldermen decided to erect a statue of [[Pieter Paul Rubens]] on the burg square left after the demolition. In 1880, when the Scheldt quais were built, most of the area of the first fortified city from the 11th century was demolished and even the foundations of the St. Walburga Church disappeared, and the statue was moved to the Groenplaats.

Some parts of the interior of that ancient church, which actively served for more than 700 years, were recovered: the altarpiece painting ''[[The Elevation of the Cross (Rubens)|The Elevation of the Cross]]'' and the [[predella]] (foot of the altar) have been reused in the main altar of the [[Cathedral of Our Lady (Antwerp)|Cathedral of Our Lady]].<ref name="world and its people">{{cite book
  |editor-last = Dunton |editor-first = Larkin |last=Coe |first= Fanny E. |title = The World and Its People|publisher=Silver, Burdett & Co. |year = 1896 |location= Boston |volume = 9. Book V. ''Modern Europe''|page = [https://books.google.com/books?id=HLMXAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA164 164]}}</ref> Another altar was moved to the {{ill|Heikese kerk|nl}} in [[Tilburg]] where it serves as the main altar.

In 1936, the city master builder (architect) {{ill|Flor Van Reeth|nl}} constructed a new modernistic church building with the same name on the Volkstraat near {{ill|Het Zuid|nl|Zuid – Museum}}. This building was declared a monument in 1995 and was restored in 2007.

==See also==
* [[Germanic Christianity]]
* [[Walpurgis (disambiguation)|Walpurgis]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{DNB poster|Walburga}}
*{{Commonscat-inline}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walpurga}}
[[Category:710 births]]
[[Category:770s deaths]]
[[Category:8th-century English nuns]]
[[Category:8th-century Christian nuns]]
[[Category:West Saxon saints]]
[[Category:Anglo-Saxon nuns]]
[[Category:8th-century Christian saints]]
[[Category:Christian female saints of the Middle Ages]]
[[Category:Walpurgis Night]]