Cunigundis
The childless wife of Henry II (d. 1124), St. Cunigundis (d. 1133/39) has long been commemorated in the Roman mass a virgin. Modern scholars believe this is a mistake. Legends say that her parents, Count Sigisbert and Countess Hedwig of Luxumbourg, married her to Henry, another thwarted monastic, in 999. Cunigundis is said to have persuaded him to live as brother and sister, and later hagiographers added an accusation of infidelity to her legend. She is said to have cleared herself from the charge of adultery by walking on hot plowshares. She and Henry founded the cathedral at Bamberg, where both are buried.
After an illness experienced before the death of her husband, Cunigundis endowed a Benedictine convent at Kaufungen, and on the first anniversary of her widowhood, she was received into the community there. She gave away her wealth and spent the remainder of her life in prayer. Innocent III canonized her in 1200.
Karen Rae Keck
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