St. Louis IX, King of France, and the Fleur-de-lis

August 25 is the feast day of St. Louis IX, king of France.  This brings to mind the fleur-de-lis, a stylized image of a lily,* which has come to represent France and especially French monarchs

The French phrase fleur de lis means literally “flower of the lily”. The lily is associated with the Virgin Mary and her purity, and with the Archangel Gabriel, the angel of the Annunciation. The three petals can be seen as standing for the Holy Trinity. During the reign of King Louis IX they also came to represent faith, wisdom, and chivalry. This is not surprising since King Louis (1215-1270) was a monarch endowed with those virtues.

King Louis spent long hours in prayer, singing the Divine Office daily as if he were a monk. He fasted and fed beggars at his table. He did penance and cared for lepers. King Louis led Crusades from 1248-1249 and in 1270. He died near Tunis during the 1270 crusade. At Tradition in Action, Prof. Plinio Correa de Oliveira discusses the attribute of wisdom found in St. Louis IX:

“Our Lady was the Seat of Wisdom and was always seeking to increase her knowledge, love and service of God. “This virtue is demanded of kings, governors, and anyone who exercises some form of power. A king without wisdom loses his people. When he has wisdom, he saves his people, and is the glory of his people. For a man without wisdom, power becomes an instrument of his perdition.

“Hence, we can understand the magnificent eulogy Scriptures made of the wise king. He leads peoples and things to their last end, which is God. This is the ultimate meaning of his kingship.

“What we admire in St. Louis, King of France, is the model of a wise man placed on the throne to govern his kingdom.”

In 1297, less than thirty years after King Louis’ death, Pope Boniface VIII raised him to the altar as a Catholic saint, and we celebrate his feast day today, August 25. 

 Image: Toison D’or le Roi de France [Golden Fleece King of France] from Wikimedia Commons. In the public domain. 

 *There is some controversy over whether the fleur-de-lis represents a lily or a yellow flag iris. Given the importance of the lily in religious iconography, however, the better view is that it represents the lily.

Queen Dagmar and the Bishop

Readers might remember the earlier post on Dagmar (ca. 1189-1212/ 1213), Denmark's beloved medieval Catholic Queen. A charming ballad tells that through Dagmar's effort Bishop Valdemar of Schleswig was freed. He had been imprisoned for more than a decade in order to thwart his efforts to become the ruler of Denmark.

Image:
Herman Wilhelm Bissen's sculpture of Queen Dagmar, from Wikimedia Commons. In the public domain.

Queen Anna of Sweden and Poland

Anna of Austria (1573-1598) was the first wife of King Sigismund III Vasa of Poland and Sweden. Both Anna and her husband were devout Catholics.

Image:
Anna of Austria, from Wikimedia Commons. In the public domain.

Queen Dagmar of Denmark and Her Cross

Once upon a time, prior to the Reformation, Denmark was Catholic. One reminder of its former Catholicity is the “Dagmar Cross”.



Queen Dagmar, a princess named Margrethe, was born around 1186 in Bohemia, and became the consort of the Danish King Valdemar II ("Valdemar the Victorious"), who reigned from 1202-1241. Dagmar was much loved by the Danish people.

In 1209, Queen Dagmar gave birth to a son, also named Valdemar. In 1212 or 1213, Dagmar died while giving birth to her second son. In 1214, King Valdemar II remarried. Unfortunately, in 1231, Dagmar's first son, Prince Valdemar, was killed in a hunting accident.

Queen Dagmar is buried in St. Bendt's Church in Ringsted, Denmark next to King Valdemar II, whose second wife is buried on his other side.

"St. Bendt" refers to St. Benedict, the great father of western monasticism. The church is the only remaining building of Ringsted Kloster, a Benedictine monastery that was destroyed by fire in the 18th century.

Dagmar's grave was opened in 1690 and she was found to have been buried wearing a Cross that is believed to date to around the year 1000. On one side is a Crucifix. On the other side, Christ is at the center and the four arms of the Cross depict, starting at the top and moving clockwise, St. John Chrysostom, St. John the Evangelist, St. Basil, and Our Lady.

Images:
-- Queen Dagmar, St. Bendt's Church detail, from Wikimedia Commons. Some rights reserved.
-- Black and white representation of the Dagmar Cross, also from Wikimedia Commons. In the public domain.
-- Color photograph of Dagmar Cross - From Visit Denmark. There you will find a slide show of St. Bendt's, including the above photograph of the Dagmar Cross and pictures of the church's stunning interior.

The Childhood of Queen Isabella of Castile

"Isabella of Castile and her brother Alfonso offer us a beautiful example of children who remained faithful to Catholic teaching when placed in an extremely hostile environment." Dr. Marian T. Horvat tells the story here.

Readers interested in Queen Isabella might enjoy two very interesting lectures on the life and works of Queen Isabella by Msgr. Ignacio Barreiro that can be purchased in mp3 audio from Keep the Faith.


Image:
Isabella, from Dr. Horvat's article.