Saint Elizabeth of Portugal, Queen & Widow (1962 Roman Calendar)

Saint Elizabeth was born about the year 1271, of the royal house of Aragon in Spain, and was named after her great-aunt, Saint Elizabeth of Hungary. From her childhood she was given to piety, prayer, and works of mercy. Still young, she was given in marriage to King Denis of Portugal, and so became queen of that realm, where she would spend her long life.

A holy queen

As queen, Saint Elizabeth kept amid the cares of the court a life of remarkable devotion, rising early for prayer, assisting at the Sacrifice of the Mass, and ordering her days by the offices of the Church. She was unwearied in charity to the poor, the sick, and the stranger: she founded hospitals and houses of refuge, cared for orphans and fallen women, and gave generously of her substance to those in need, so that the people loved her as a mother.

Her married life was not without trial, yet she bore every difficulty with patience and gentleness, returning good for evil and seeking always the peace of her household and her kingdom. After the death of King Denis she put aside the splendour of the court, took the habit of the Third Order of Saint Francis, and gave herself wholly to prayer, penance, and the service of the poor near the convent of Poor Clares which she had founded at Coimbra.

The peacemaker

Above all Saint Elizabeth is remembered as a maker of peace. More than once she went out in person to reconcile warring princes and to avert the shedding of blood, even setting herself between opposing armies. The collect of her feast praises God who, among her other excellent gifts, adorned her with the special grace of calming the fury of war, and asks that by her intercession we may attain, after the peace for which we humbly pray, to the joys of eternal life.

She died on the eighth of July, 1336, while on an errand of reconciliation, and was later canonised. Her feast honours a queen who used her high place not for herself but for God and for her people, and who showed that holiness and charity may flourish upon a throne. She is venerated as a patroness of peace and of those who work to reconcile enemies.

The Collect

O most merciful God, who, among other excellent gifts, didst adorn blessed Elizabeth the queen with the prerogative of calming the fury of war: grant unto us, by her intercession, that after the peace of this mortal life, which we humbly ask, we may come to the joys of eternity.

Clementíssime Deus, qui beátam Elisabeth regínam, inter céteras egrégias dotes, béllici furóris sedándi prærogatíva decorásti: da nobis, eius intercessióne; post mortális vitæ, quam supplíciter pétimus, pacem, ad ætérna gáudia perveníre.

Patronage

She is venerated as a patroness of Portugal, of those who work for peace and reconciliation, and of those in difficult marriages; she is invoked in time of war.

In the Modern Calendar

In the modern calendar her memorial is observed on 4 July as an optional memorial.

Common Questions

When is the feast of Saint Elizabeth of Portugal?

In the calendar of the 1962 Roman Missal her feast is kept on 8 July as a Third Class feast. In the modern calendar her memorial is observed on 4 July.

Who was Saint Elizabeth of Portugal?

She was a queen of Portugal in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, of the royal house of Aragon and a kinswoman of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary. She was renowned for her prayer, her charity to the poor, and her work as a peacemaker among warring princes. She died in 1336 and was later canonised.

Why is she remembered as a peacemaker?

On more than one occasion Saint Elizabeth went out in person to reconcile feuding rulers — among them her own husband and son — and to prevent war. The collect of her feast specially praises the grace God gave her of calming the fury of war, and she is invoked as a patroness of peace.

See where this feast falls in the Church’s year on the liturgical calendar, or find a Traditional Latin Mass near you.

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