Hildegard (1), A Dictionary of Saintly Women

What it is

This is an entry from a Victorian dictionary of saintly women, a reference work describing the lives of female saints. The entry gives a short biography, feast day, and the legends associated with its subject.

Why it matters

This particular entry describes a different Hildegard — an eighth-century queen of the Franks who founded an abbey at Kempten — not the twelfth-century abbess and polymath Hildegard of Bingen. It is included here as an example of how reference works compiled saints' lives, sometimes with confusion between people sharing a name, and shows the kind of secondary source students must check carefully against other evidence.

Look closer

• Why might two different saints share the same name, and how can you tell them apart?
• What does this entry suggest about the risks of relying on a single reference work?
• What kind of evidence would help confirm which Hildegard is being described?