Elizabeth of Schönau
German Benedictine visionary
Feast: 18 June (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
Elizabeth entered the double monastery of Schönau at twelve, took the Benedictine habit and was professed in 1147; from 1157 she was superior of the nuns. Much afflicted in body and mind, she kept the Rule faithfully and practised mortification.
From 1152 she received ecstasies and visions, usually at Mass or the Office, which she recorded. She died on 18 June 1165.
The miracles
She was never formally canonised, but in 1584 her name was entered in the Roman Martyrology and has remained there.
Why that counted as sanctity
A Benedictine visionary faithful to her Rule through great suffering.
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - St. Elizabeth of Schönau
- Wikidata Q435658 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Elisabeth of Schönau (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.