Saint Ludger (also Lüdiger or Liudger) (b at Zuilen near Utrecht about 742; d 26 March 809 at Billerbeck) was a missionary among the Frisians and Saxons, founder of Werden Abbey and first Bishop of Münster in Westphalia. Utrecht is a municipality and the capital city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. ... Events Chinese poet Li Po is presented before the emperor and given a position in the Imperial court. ... March 26 is the 85th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (86th in leap years). ... Events Saga succeeds Heizei as emperor of Japan. ... The Roman historian Tacitus, in his Germania, mentioned the Frisians among people he grouped together as the Ingvaeones. ... This article is about the Saxons, a Germanic people. ... Kloster Werden or Werden Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in Essen-Werden (Germany), situated on the Ruhr. ... Town Hall at Prinzipalmarkt Münster: Prinzipalmarkt Münster is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. ... Westphalia (German: Westfalen) is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Dortmund, Gelsenkirchen, Münster, Bielefeld, and Osnabrück and included in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony. ...

Early Life to Ordination

Ludger's parents, Thiadgrim and Liafburg, were wealthy Christian Frisians of noble descent.

In 753 Ludger saw the great Apostle of Germany, Saint Boniface, which, together with the subsequent martyrdom of the saint, made a deep impression on him. At his own request he was sent to the Utrecht Cathedral School (Martinsstift), founded by Saint Gregory of Utrecht in 756 or 757, and made good progress. Events Synod of Constantinople called by Emperor Constantine V. Samarkand conquered by Arabs. ... For the Roman general of this name, see Bonifacius. ... Saint Gregory of Utrecht (b c707 or 708; d 775 or 780; Abbot of Utrecht). ... Events Abd-ar-rahman I conquers Iberia and establishes a new Umayyad dynasty. ... Events March 9 - A major earthquake strikes Palestine and Syria Offa becomes king of Mercia. ...

In 767 Gregory, who did not wish to receive episcopal consecration himself, sent Alubert, who had come from England to assist him in his missionary work, to York to be consecrated bishop. Ludger accompanied him to be ordained into the diaconate (as he duly was, by Ethelbert of York) and to study under Alcuin, but after a year he returned to Utrecht. Some time later he was granted an opportunity to continue his studies in the same school, when he developed a friendship with Alcuin which lasted throughout life. For the aircraft, see Boeing 767. ... York is a city in northern England, at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss. ... The diaconate is one of three ordained offices in the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Eastern Orthodox, and Oriental Orthodox churches. ... Ethelbert, Archbishop of York (unknown - November 8, 780) (according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle or 781), was the teacher and intimate friend of Alcuin, whose poem on the saints and prelates of the Church of York, De Sanctis et Pontificibus Ecclesiæ Eboracensis, is the principal source of information concerning Ethelbert... Rabanus Maurus (left), supported by Alcuin (middle), presents his work to Otgar of Mainz Flaccus Albinus Alcuinus or Ealhwine (about 735-May 19, 804) was a monk from York, England. ...

In 772 friction arose between the Anglo-Saxons and the Frisians, and Ludger, for the sake his personal safety, left for home, taking with him a number of valuable books. He remained in the Martinsstift until the death of Gregory in 775, in honour of whose memory he wrote the biography Vita Gregorii. Events Pope Adrian I succeeds Pope Stephen IV. Adrian I turns to Charlemagne for support against king Desiderius of the Lombards. ... A map showing the general locations of the Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms circa 600CE. The Anglo-Saxons were culturally-related Germanic tribes from Angeln, a peninsula in what is now Lower Saxony in northwestern Germany. ... Events Leo IV succeeds Constantine V as Byzantine Emperor. ...

He was then sent to Deventer to restore the chapel destroyed by the pagan Saxons and to find the relics of Saint Lebuinus, who had worked there as missionary, built the chapel, and died there in c775. Ludger was successful in these things, and then returned to teach in the Martinsstift, after which he and some others were sent north to destroy the pagan places of worship west of the Lauwers Zee. Deventer is a municipality and a city in the eastern Netherlands in the province of Overijssel on the east bank of the IJssel river. ... Saint Lebuinus (also known as Lebwin or Liafwin(e)), Apostle of the Frisians and patron of Deventer (b in England of Anglo-Saxon parents, date unknown; d at Deventer c 775). ... Events Leo IV succeeds Constantine V as Byzantine Emperor. ...

The Netherlands

Ludger heals Frisian singer Bernlef from his blindness (statue at Lochem, Gelderland, The Netherlands)

After Ludger had been ordained at Cologne on 7 July 777 the missions of Ostergau (or Ostracha, i.e., East Frisia) were committed to his charge, of which missions Dokkum, the place of the martyrdom of Saint Boniface, was made the centre. Every autumn however he came back to Utrecht to teach at the cathedral school. He worked in this way for about seven years, until Widukind in 784 persuaded the Frisians to drive out the missionaries, burn the churches, and return to the pagan gods. Ludger escaped with his disciples. ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (879x768, 290 KB) Summary Statue of the missionary Liudger and the blind Frisian singer Bernlef. ... ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (879x768, 290 KB) Summary Statue of the missionary Liudger and the blind Frisian singer Bernlef. ... Cologne (German: ▶ (help· info) [kœln]; Kölsch: Kölle) is Germanys fourth largest city after Berlin, Hamburg and Munich. ... July 7 is the 188th day of the year (189th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 177 days remaining. ... Events Charlemagne beats the Saxons. ... East Frisia (Ostfriesland) is a coastal region in the northwest of the German federal state of Lower Saxony. ... Dongeradeel is a municipality in the northern Netherlands. ... Widukind or Wittekind was a Saxon leader, duke of Saxony and one of the heads of the nobility of Westphalia. ... Events August 31 - Paul IV abdicates as Patriarch of Constantinople December 25 - Tarasius elected Patriarch of Constantinople The Japanese capital moved away from Nara. ...

Ludger escaped with his disciples, and in 785 visited Rome, where he was well received by Pope Adrian I, who gave him much advice and special faculties. From Rome he went to Monte Cassino, where he lived according to the Rule of Saint Benedict, but did not bind himself by vows. Events Widukind and many other Saxons are baptized. ... City motto: Senatus Populusque Romanus – SPQR (The Senate and the People of Rome) Founded 21 April 753 BC mythical, 1st millennium BC Region Latium Mayor Walter Veltroni (Left-Wing Democrats) Area  - City Proper  1290 km² Population  - City (2004)  - Metropolitan  - Density (city proper) 2,823,807 almost 4,000,000 1... Adrian, or Hadrian I, (died December 25, 795) was pope from 772 to 795. ... The restored Abbey Monte Cassino is a rocky hill about eighty miles (130 km) south of Rome, Italy, a mile to the west of the town of Cassino (the Roman Cassinum having been on the hill) and about 1700 ft (520 m) altitude. ... The Rule of St Benedict by Benedict of Nursia (fl. ...

The news of Widukind's submission, and the arrival of Charlemagne at Monte Cassino in 787, put an end to Ludger's peaceful retirement. He was appointed missionary to the five districts at the mouth of the Ems, which were still occupied almost entirely by pagans. He began his work armed with characteristic energy and faith in God, and had a significant advantage in that he knew the language and habits of the people, and put this knowledge to good use in achieving their peaceful conversion. Charlemagne (742 or 747–28 January 814) (also Charles the Great; from Latin, Carolus Magnus or Karolus Magnus) was the king of the Franks from 768 to 814 and king of the Lombards from 774 to 781. ... This article is about the year 787. ... The Ems (German; Dutch: Eems) is a river in northwestern Germany and northeastern Netherlands. ...

He worked in many places: the island of Bant, long since sunk beneath the sea, is mentioned as the scene of his apostolic work. He visited Heligoland (Fossitesland), where Saint Willibrord had preached, where he destroyed the remains of paganism and built a Christian church. The well, formerly sacred to the pagan gods, he re-dedicated as his baptismal font. On his return he met the blind bard Bernlef, last of the Frisian skalds, cured his blindness, and made him a devout Christian. Birdseye view, Helgoland, Germany, ca. ... Saint Willibrord (c. ... The skald was a member of a group of courtly poets, whose poetry is associated with the courts of Scandinavian and Icelandic leaders during the Viking age, who composed and performed renditions of aspects of what we now characterise as Old Norse poetry. ...

Westphalia and Saxony

In 793 Charlemagne wished to make Ludger Bishop of Trier, but he declined, while declaring himself willing to undertake the evangelization of the Saxons. Charlemagne accepted the offer, and North-western Saxony was thus added to Ludger's missionary field. The monastery of St. Ludger's Abbey at Helmstedt was founded as part of his missionary activity in this part of Germany. To meet necessary expenses the income of the Abbey of Leuze, in the present Belgian province of Hainault, was given him, and he was told to pick his fellow-workers from the members of that abbey. Events Vikings sack the monastery of Lindisfarne, Northumbria. ... The Archbishopric of Trier was one of the important ecclesiastical principalities of the Holy Roman Empire. ... St. ... Helmstedt is a city located at the eastern edge of the German state of Lower Saxony. ... The virtually independent county of Hainaut emerged from chaotic conditions at the end of the 9th century as a semi-independent state, at first a vassal of the crown of Lotharingia. ...

As Mimigernaford (also Mimigardeford or Miningarvard) had been designated the centre of the new district, Ludger built a monastery there, from which the place took the name of Münster. Here he lived with his monks according to the rule of Saint Chrodegang of Metz, which in 789 had been made obligatory in the Frankish territories. Town Hall at Prinzipalmarkt Münster: Prinzipalmarkt Münster is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. ... Saint Chrodegang, bishop of Metz, was born in the early eighth century at Hasbania (now Belgian Limburg) of a noble Frankish family, and died at Metz, March 6, 766. ... City motto: Si paix dedans, paix dehors (French: If peace inside, peace outside) City proper (commune) Région Lorraine Département Moselle (57) Mayor Jean-Marie Rausch Area 41. ... Events Uprising in Japan leads to a major defeat for Emperor Kammu, alongside a severe drought and famine Constantine becomes king of the Picts Herford founded by Charlemagne Fes founded by Idris I Eadburh marries Beorhtric of Wessex Births Deaths Categories: 789 ... Statue of Charlemagne (also called Karl der Große, Charles the Great) in Frankfurt, Germany. ...

He also built a chapel on the left bank of the Aa in honour of the Blessed Virgin, as well as the churches of Billerbeck, Coesfeld, Hersfeld, Nottuln and others. Near the church of Nottuln he built a home for his sister, Saint Gerburgis, who had consecrated herself to God. Many other women soon joined her, and so originated the first convent in Westphalia (c803). Aa is the name of a large number of small European rivers. ... Blessed Virgin Mary A traditional Catholic picture displayed sometimes in homes. ... Coesfeld is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, capital of the district Coesfeld. ... Bad Hersfeld is a spa town in the north-eastern region of Hessen in Germany. ... Nottuln is 20 km of Münster in the Baumberge. ... This article is about an abbey as a religious building. ... Events Nicephorus I and Charlemagne settle their imperial boundaries. ...

Better known however among his foundations is the abbey at Werden, founded (after an abortive attempt to establish a religious house at Wichmond on the Erft) in c800 and consecrated in 804, on ground which Ludger himself had acquired, in fulfilment of his desire, formed since his stay at Monte Cassino, to found a Benedictine house. Kloster Werden or Werden Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in Essen-Werden (Germany), situated on the Ruhr. ... The Erft is a river in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. ... Events December 25, Rome, coronation of Charles the Great (Charlemagne) as emperor by Pope Leo III. Celtic monks begin work on the Book of Kells on the Island of Iona. ... Events March 25 - The Inscription of Sukabumi from Eastern Java marks the beginning of the Javanese language. ...

Later life

At the request of Charlemagne, Ludger received episcopal consecration, from Hildebold, Archbishop of Cologne, on 30 March 805. His principal concern was to have a good and efficient clergy. To a great extent he educated his students personally, and generally took some of them on his missionary tours. The Archbishopric of Cologne was one of the major ecclesiastical principalities of the Holy Roman Empire. ... March 30 is Martines birthday of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (90th in Leap years). ... Events Emperor Nicephorus I of Byzantium suffers a major defeat against the Saracens at Crasus. ...

It was said of him that his peaceful methods were far more effective in promoting Christianity than the aggressive tactics of Charlemagne. He was criticised during his life for spending money on alms that should have gone towards the ornamentation of his churches suffered thereby, but was able to convince Charlemagne that this was no fault.

Death and relics

On Passion Sunday 809, Ludger heard mass at Coesfeld early in the morning and preached, then went to Billerbeck, where at nine o'clock he again preached, and said his last mass. That evening he died peacefully in the company of his followers. Passion Sunday is a term formerly used to denote the fifth Sunday of Lent in the Christian liturgical calendar; since 1970, when the new church calendar approved by the Second Vatican Council went into effect, the term has been applied to the following Sunday, until then officially called Palm Sunday... Events Saga succeeds Heizei as emperor of Japan. ... Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI) presiding at the 2005 Easter Vigil Mass in place of Pope John Paul II. Mass is the term used of the celebration of the Eucharist in the Latin rites of the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Church. ...

A dispute arose between Münster and Werden for the possession of his body. His brother Hildegrim was appealed to, and after consultation with the Emperor, decided in favour of Werden, where the relics still remain. Portions have however since been brought to Münster and Billerbeck. The Holy Roman Emperor was, with some variation, the ruler of the Holy Roman Empire, the predecessor of modern Germany, during its existence from the 10th century until its collapse in 1806. ...

Veneration

The successive Vitae, beginning with the serious contemporary biographical work of Altfrid and passing through the Vita Secunda and Vita Tertia to the Libellus Monasteriensis de miraculis sancti Liudgeri (The Little Book of Münster on the Miracles of Saint Ludger) of c 1170, demonstrate the growth of the legend. Votive practice in Münster seems to have focussed on a very large and elaborate cross containing a number of relics of the saint. The cult seems to have remained mostly local, and largely to have faded in the later Middle Ages. Events December 29: Assassination of Thomas Beckett, Archbishop of Canterbury, in Canterbury cathedral Eleanor of Aquitaine leaves the court of Henry II because of a string of infidelities. ...

Ludger is represented either as a bishop reciting his breviary or as standing between two geese (occasionally described as swans). Feast: 26 March. A breviary (from Latin brevis, short or concise) is a liturgical book containing the public or canonical prayers, hymns, the Psalms, readings, and notations for everyday use, especially for priests, in the Divine Office (i. ... March 26 is the 85th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (86th in leap years). ...

Literature

(mostly in German):

• Börsting, Heinrich, Borger, Hugo, Elbern, Victor H.: Sankt Liudger 809-1959. Gedenkschrift zum 1150. Todestage des Heiligen, Essen-Werden 1959
• Börsting, Heinrich and Schröder, Alois (eds): Liudger und sein Erbe, 2 vols (= Westfalia Sacra, Bd.1-2), Münster 1948-1950
• Boser: Am Grabe des hl. Ludger (Münster, 1908).
• Buhlmann, Michael: Liudger an der Ruhr, in: Ich verkünde euch Christus. St. Liudger, Zeuge des Glaubens 742-809 [1998], pp 22-42
• Buhlmann, Michael: Liudger und Karl der Große, in: Ich verkünde euch Christus. St. Liudger, Zeuge des Glaubens 742-809 [2001], pp 5-48
• Buhlmann, Michael: Liudger in den Münsteraner Chroniken des Mittelalters und der frühen Neuzeit, in: Ich verkünde euch Christus. St. Liudger, Zeuge des Glaubens 742-809 [2002], pp 76-100
• Buhlmann, Michael: Liudger und sein bischöfliches Wirken in der Zeit. Sächsischer Missionsbezirk und Münsteraner Bistum Liudgers in der Kirchenorganisation des karolingischen Frankenreichs, in: Seid Zeugen des Glaubens [2005], pp 55-89
• Diekamp, Wilhelm (ed): Die Vitae sancti Liudgeri (= Die Geschichtsquellen des Bistums Münster, Bd.4), Münster 1881
• Ficker, Julius (ed): Die Münsterischen Chroniken des Mittelalters (= Die Geschichtsquellen des Bistums Münster, Bd.1), Münster 1859
• Freise, Eckhard: Vom vorchristlichen Mimigernaford zum "honestum monasterium" Liudgers, in: Geschichte der Stadt Münster, ed F-J Jakobi, Bd.1: Von den Anfängen bis zum Ende des Fürstbistums, Münster, 3rd ed, 1994, pp 1-51
• Freise, Eckhard (ed): Liudger, in: Lexikon des Mittelalters, vol 5, Sp.2038
• Gerchow, Jan (ed): Das Jahrtausend der Mönche. KlosterWelt - Werden 799-1803 (exhibitin catalogue), Essen-Köln 1999
• Kaus, Eberhard: Zu den Liudger-Viten des 9. Jahrhunderts, Westfälische Zeitung, 142 (1992), pp 9-55
• Levison, W: England and the Continent in the Eighth Century (1946)
• Löwe, Heinz: Liudger als Zeitkritiker, in: HJb 74 (1955), pp 79-91
• Pingsmann: Der hl. Ludgerus (Freiburg, 1879)
• Revue Benedictine, III, 107; VII, 412
• Schrade, H: Die vita des hl Liudger und ihre Bilder (1960)
• Senger, Basilius (ed): Liudger in seiner Zeit. Altfrid über Liudger. Liudgers Erinnerungen, Münster, 4th ed, 1986
• Stadler: Heiligenlexikon

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