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Bronislava of Poland

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Blessed Bronislava
Błogosławiona Bronisława by Wojciech Eljasz-Radzikowski, 1849
Bornc. 1204
Kamień, Włodawa County
Died29 August 1259
Zwierzyniec, Kraków
Venerated inRoman Catholic Church
Beatified23 August 1839 by Pope Gregory XVI
Feast1 September

Blessed Bronislava (Polish: Bronisława; c. 1204[1]–1259) was a Polish nun of the Premonstratensian Order. She is beatified in the Roman Catholic Church.

Stained glass blessed Bronislava in cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Wrocław

Early life

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Bronislava was born at Kamień, Włodawa County, in eastern Poland as Bronislawa Odrowaz in about 1200,[2] although some sources give a birth date of 1203[3] or 1204.[1] She was the daughter of Count Stanislaus and Countess Anna of Prandata-Odrowaz and a cousin of Saint Hyacinth of Poland.[3]

Religious vocation

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At the age of sixteen, she was introduced by Hyacinth to a religious community of the Norbertine order at Zwierzyniec, Kraków. She subsequently worked with the sick and poor at a number of monasteries, living in a most austere way. She is believed to have seen a vision of the Virgin Mary at the moment of the death of Hyacinth in 1257.[4] Bronislava died of natural causes on 29 August 1259 at Zwierzyniec.[2]

Beatification and remembrance

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Her cult began soon after her death,[5] and in 1707 she was designated a patron of Poland, and of orphans. She was beatified by Pope Gregory XVI on 23 August 1839,[2] after being attributed for protecting Zwierzyniec from cholera in 1835. Her feast day is celebrated on 1 September.[6]

She is commemorated by the Blessed Bronisława Chapel in Kraków. A minor planet discovered in 1933 was named "Bronislawa" in her honour.[7] There is a street named for her in the Ligota-Panewniki region of Katowice.[8]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Cholewczuk, Piotr. "Błogosławiona Bronisława". Siostry Norbertanki. Archived from the original on 2017-03-25. Retrieved 2014-09-05.
  2. ^ a b c "Blessed Bronislava of Poland". Saints.SQPN.com. 24 August 2014. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
  3. ^ a b Petit, François (2011), Spirituality of the Premonstratensians: The Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries, Cistercian Publications ISBN 978-0-87907-242-1 (p. 136)
  4. ^ Petit, pp. 137 - 140
  5. ^ Fos, Henryk; Sowa, Franciszek (2007). Księga imion i świętych. Part VI. Kraków.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  6. ^ Gryczyński, Michał (27 August 2004). "Św. Bronisława". Katolicki Przewodnik.
  7. ^ Schmadel, Lutz (1992), Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, Volume 1, Springer-Verlag ISBN 3-540-00238-3 (p. 108)
  8. ^ Katowice – Plan miasta. Demart SA. 2009–2010.