HEINRICH, FOUNDER - 31 JULY

 

ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN JULY

Saints celebrated on the 31st of July

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HEINRICH, FOUNDER OF THE EICHSTÄTT LEPROSY HOUSE

The Eichstätt leprosy house is
 considered to be the only
completely preserved
late medieval leprosy complex

Heinrich [Henry] (Henricus, Hainricus) (July 31) is named as the founder of a leprosy house outside the walls of Eichstätt [Germany]. He is described as a pious man who was also buried there. (Rad. IV. 97.)

(Information from Stadler's Complete Encyclopedia of Saints, Volume 2, Augsburg, 1861, p. 647)

Stadler's Complete Encyclopedia of Saints - Sources and Abbreviations

THE EICHSTÄTT LEPROSY HOUSE

The Eichstätt leprosy house "Siechhof" was first mentioned as “domum leprosorum” (house of lepers) in 1307 under Bishop Philipp of Eichstätt, who ruled from 1306 to 1322. The founder was a “Brother Heinrich”. 

Anyone suffering from leprosy was isolated here; the expatriation from the city took place as part of a church ceremony. Relatives and the city itself ensured the economic security of the Siechhof through regular alms, but also through donations and sales of farms, fields, meadows and forests. Twice a week, the leproses of Eichstätt were allowed to beg in the city, where they had to draw attention to themselves with a rattle so that the healthy people did not come too close to them. 

The infirmary nurses appointed by the magistrate were responsible for the administration; all their names have been passed down without any gaps from the 14th to the 16th century. The founder Heinrich was the first carer; the most famous carer of all was probably the local sculptor Loy Hering in 1536. For religious and disciplinary reasons, the inmates lived together in a brotherhood-like manner, but without affiliation to any specific religious Order.

Source: https://de.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siechhof_Eichst%C3%A4tt