Leoba

Leoba (also Lioba and Leofgyth) (c. 710 - September 28, 782) was an Anglo-Saxon nun who was part of Boniface's mission to the Germans, and a saint.

Early life

Her birth date is unknown, but she was born Leofgyth in Wessex to a noble family. Her mother was related to Boniface, and Boniface was a friend of her father's. She entered Wimborne Minster as an oblate and corresponded with Boniface. Four lines of Latin verse in imitation of Aldhelm survive from a letter she wrote to Boniface, where she reminds him of her connection to him. Apparently, she was seeking even then to be part of Boniface's upcoming missionary work, because he invited her, along with other Anglo-Saxon nuns, to come to Germany. Her "acta" derives largely from Rudolf of Fulda, who indicates that she arrived in Germany around 748 (likely some time before).

Life as a missionary

Boniface established a convent in the Franconian town Tauberbischofsheim, where she became the abbess. Boniface, whose relationship to her could be as near as that of uncle, entrusted Leoba with a great deal of authority, and Rudolf of Fulda indicates that she was not merely in charge of her own house, but all of the nuns who worked for Boniface. In 754, when Boniface was preparing a missionary trip to Frisia, where he would suffer martyrdom, he gave his monastic cowl to Leoba to indicate that, when he was away, she was his delegate.

She was a learned woman, and in the following years she was involved in the foundation of nunneries in Kitzingen and Ochsenfurt. She had a leading role in evangelizing her area, and, during her life, she was credited with quelling a storm with her command. Additionally, bishops in Fulda consulted with her, and she was the only woman allowed to enter into monasteries in Fulda to consult with the ecclesiastical leaders on issues of monastic rule. She was also favored in the court of Pippin III, and Hildegard, wife of Charlemagne, was her friend.

Later years

In her later years, she retired with a few other Anglo-Saxon nuns to an estate near Mainz in Schornsheim. The estate was given by Charlemagne for her exclusive use. She died on September 28 in 782. Boniface's will had originally designated that Leoba was to be buried in his own tomb. However, when Leoba died, she was, instead, placed near him, but not in the same grave. Several miracles were attributed to her gravesite, and she was canonized. Her relics were translated twice and are now behind an altar in a church dedicated to Mary and the virgins of Christ in Petersburg in Fulda. Rudolf of Fulda was commissioned to write the "acta" of her life in connection with this second translation of relics.

Her feast day in the Roman Catholic Church is September 28.

References

* Yorke, Barbara, "Leoba" in Matthew, H.C.G. and Brian Harrison, eds. "The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography." vol. 33, 75-6. London: Oxford UP, 2004.