Saint Ludmila of Bohemia (Whirledge) Icon - S670

Saint Ludmila was born about the year 860 to the ruling family of Bohemia in the modern Czech Republic. At the age of about 13, she was married to Borivoy, the first Christian Duke of Bohemia. They worked together to enlighten their subjects with the Christian Faith, building churches and inviting clergy to serve in them.

The couple bore six children in their 14 years of marriage, until Borivoy died young at about the age of 36. Ludmila saw her two sons Spytihnev and Bratislav rule in succession, both of whom also died young. Bratislav left his son Wenceslaus to rule Bohemia.

Wenceslaus's mother took advantage of her son's inexperience and reintroduced paganism to the country. Saint Ludmila opposed this, which caused her daughter-in-law to hate her. She eventually sent assassins to murder her mother-in-law, and Saint Ludmila died on September 15, 921. For this, Wenceslaus exiled his mother for three years. Wenceslaus would later be known as the "Good King" Saint Wenceslaus.

For her defense of the Gospel and her opposition to paganism, Saint Ludmila was canonized as a martyr soon after her death, and her relics were moved to the Church of Saint George in Prague, where they remain to this day. Her feast was established on September 16.

In the icon, her scroll reads, "Lord, free my people from the darkness of idolatry."

This icon is offered by Legacy Icons with the permission of the iconographer, Brian Matthew Whirledge.