Adalbert of Magdeburg | |
|---|---|
 Holy Card for St. Adalbert of Magdeburg | |
| Archbishop of Magdeburg and Abbot ofWissembourg | |
| Born | c. 910 Alsace orLorraine,France |
| Died | 20 June 981 (aged 70–71) Zscherben |
| Venerated in | Eastern Orthodox Church Roman Catholic Church |
| Feast | 20 June |
Adalbert of Magdeburg (c. 910 – 20 June 981), sometimes incorrectly shortened to "Albert", known as theApostle of the Slavs, was the firstArchbishop of Magdeburg (from 968)[1] and a successful missionary to thePolabian Slavs to the east of what was contemporarilyGermany. He was latercanonised and hisliturgical feast day was assigned as 20 June.
Adalbert was born c. 910, possibly inAlsace orLorraine,France. He was a Germanmonk at theBenedictine Monastery ofSt. Maximinus inTrier,Germany. He was consecrated aRoman Catholicbishop and in 961 was sent toKievan Rus. PrincessOlga of Kiev had askedEmperor Otto I (the Great) to provide her amissionary from theRoman Catholic Church.[2] Her son took the crown from her in 961, just as Adalbert arrived in Kievan Rus. Adalbert's missionary companions were slain and Adalbert barely escaped. Kievan Rus subsequently was converted by missionaries fromConstantinople and became part ofByzantine Christianity.
Upon escaping Kievan Rus, Adalbert traveled to the imperial court atMainz,Germany, where he remained for four years, until he was namedAbbot ofWissembourg inAlsace. There he worked to improve the education of the monks.[3] He later became the firstArchbishop of Magdeburg,Saxony-Anhalt, in contemporaryGermany.[2] Adalbert travelled to Rome to receive thepallium before assuming his see.[4]
The Archiepiscopacies ofHamburg andBremen had been established with the intention that they would serve as bases for missions in northern and eastern Europe. TheArchdiocese of Magdeburg was designated to provide missionaries to the eastern EuropeanSlavs.[5] Adalbert also established dioceses forNaumburg;Meissen;Merseburg;Brandenburg;Havelberg; andPoznań,Poland. He died on 20 June 981[3] in Zscherben (contemporarily in (former)Geusa, inMerseburg,Saxony-Anhalt,Germany).
A student of Adalbert for some years namedVojtěch Slavníkovec, who at hisConfirmation, took the very name of his tutor, went on from Adalbert's tutelage to successfully evangelize many Slavic peoples, received the crown ofmartyrdom inPrussia, and was canonized asSt. Adalbert of Prague.
Saint Adalbert's Cemetery inMilwaukee, Wisconsin, is dedicated to the archbishop of Magdeburg.[6]
Adalbert, also Adalbertus, Adelbertus, and Albertus Born: circa 910 inLorraine,France Died: 20 June 981 in Zscherben (contemporarily in (former)Geusa, inMerseburg,Saxony-Anhalt,Germany) | ||
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| New diocese | Archbishop of Magdeburg 968–981 | Succeeded by |
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