11.6. 1234 Saint Agnes goes to the monastery

She is considered the patron saint of Czech nursing. Anezka Premyslovna devoted her entire life to helping the poor and the sick.Sheentered a monastery in 1234.

St. Agnes was a member of the Přemyslid family. She was probably born in Prague on 20 January 1211 as the youngest daughter of Přemysl Otakar I and his second wife, Constance of Hungary, and as the younger sister of the later King Wenceslas II. During her childhood Anežka was brought up in the Cistercian monastery in Třebnice and in the Premonstratensian monastery in Doksy. She devoted herself fully to the service of God, sacrificing her youth, her high position and wealth out of pure idealism and religious enthusiasm.

In 1232 she founded the St. Francis Hospital for the poor and sick at Poříčí and in 1233 near Š.two monasteries were founded in the vicinity of the monastery - the male Friars Minor of St. Francis and the female Order of St. Clare. "In 1234, Agnes herself entered the convent of the Poor Clares and became its superior," writes Ilona Plevová in her book Nursing.

Agnes founded a hospital fraternity, which was soon recognized by the Pope as an independent nursing Order of the Crusaders with the Red Star. Agnes was the first woman to found a male order. Based on her extensive experience in nursing, she developed an efficient system and specific rules for the care of the sick. She devoted her entire life to helping the poor and the sick. She is rightly considered the patroness of Czech nursing.

She died on 2 March 1282 and was buried in the monastery church of Na Františku. During the Hussite Wars, the Poor Clares fled the monastery and apparently took the remains of Agnes with them, as they have not been found yet.

The declaration of Agnes as a saint was attempted by Eliška Přemyslovna, who admired her greatly. However, the reason was that the place where Agnes' remains were buried was unknown. This was a condition for canonization at that time. It was not until 1874, thanks to the Cardinal and Archbishop of Prague, Bedřich Jan Jakub Celestin Josef Schwarzenberg, that Agnes of Premyslid was beatified. "However, the canonization she so longed for was not granted to her until 12 November 1989. Her canonization was pronounced by John Paul II..," recalls Plevová.

Agnes is commemorated by the equestrian statue of Myslbek in Wenceslas Square in Prague, which depicts St. Wenceslas surrounded by four figures. Namely, Saint Vojtěch, Saint Prokop, Saint Ludmila and Saint Agnes.

Sources:
Ilona Plevová: Nursing
Jiří Glet: Pranostics in the Eight Seasons
www.cirkev.cz