Part III : The Crown of Goodness : Chapter 7 : § 5.39-42

Chapter 7 : The Sixth Star or Splendour of the Crown of Goodness of the MOTHER OF GOD

She is a true model of generosity towards her children

Continuing our translation of the 1845 reprint of Fr François Poiré’s Triple Crown of the Mother of God (1643 French edition).

Notre Dame des Grâces, Cotignac (Poggi, 2020)

§ 5. The Gratitude of the Mother of God towards certain Kings, Queens and other Rulers

John I – Duke of Lorraine

 39   Out of all the Dukes of Lorraine, John I will always be honoured for the glorious memory he left, being a Prince endowed with many virtues and a great servant of the Virgin. We shall see now how she made this known to him herself.  

Woringen is a town in the lands of the Elector of Cologne and was being used as a base by a great number of brigands who dominated the surrounding plains like an army of occupation. They threatened not only trades-people and private citizens (who were frightened to go out) but also the Princes of adjoining regions and the best cities of the region. In order to deal with the fear this was causing, the Dukes of Jülich and Mons agreed with those in Cologne that they should speak to the Duke of Lorraine, who was also Duke of Brabant. They humbly asked him to join forces with them so that they could remove these brigands from their stronghold. This brave and valiant Prince immediately agreed to their just request and, after commending his plans to the Virgin, he raised a small force which he led straight to Woringen in order to lay siege to the brigands. They sallied forth and a bloody battle ensued between the two armies, one fighting for the glory of God and for peace in the region, the other for their freedom and for their very lives. Although the latter were ten times more numerous than the Duke’s soldiers, he managed to cut to pieces a large number of them, taking many prisoners and forcing the others to flee shamefully in disorder, whilst he suffered negligible losses. The support of the most sacred Virgin was so apparent during this battle that the Duke was determined to give her all the honour for the victory. With this in mind, he instituted a feast in honour of Our Lady of Victory, which is celebrated solemnly every year in the city of Brussels on the 5th of June. 

Duke Anthony

 40   We covered in some detail the piety of Duke Antony and the victories won through favours he received from the Holy Virgin when we were discussing Notre-Dame de Saint-George in Chapter 2 of Part I.

Henry II

 41   Henry II, the most recent of the Dukes to die, was exceptionally good-natured and so devoted to the Virgin that simply hearing him mention her name would touch people’s hearts. He could never refuse anything asked of him for the love of the MOTHER OF GOD. He used to fast every Saturday in her honour in the same way people fast on Good Friday, abstaining from everything that had once been alive. He celebrated all her feasts religiously and could often be seen kneeling down before the altar of the Holy Virgin in the Church of Saint-George, where he was accustomed to assist at the Litanies which his wife, her Serene Highness Margherita Gonzaga, ordered to be sung every day in the same way they are in the Holy Chapel of Loreto. As far as may be judged, it was his bountiful Mother who filled his heart with compassion, who granted him a peaceful and gentle reign and who obtained for him a worthy death such as many might desire for themselves.  

At one point, he was suffering severely from apoplexy and this was affecting the use of his faculties. The Holy Mother sent him the most Reverend Bishop of Toul, Jean des Porcelets, a truly courageous Prelate most worthy of his Pastoral responsibility. He knew what would strike a chord with the dying prince and began to speak of devotion to the Virgin. He recalled for the Prince the various titles that Holy Church has granted her in the Litany of Loreto and this caused him to awaken as from a deep slumber. It seemed the Prince was also stirred into making acts of contrition, of faith, of hope of charity of resignation to the will of God and of humility. In his deep devotion, he shed such floods of tears that those present were moved to shed their own in abundance.

The only favour he requested was to be buried at the foot of the altar of Notre-Dame de Saint-George – but by night and with no elaborate ceremony, for he judged himself unworthy of the pomp and honour normally associated with the funerals of Princes and nobles. 

Francis II

 42   Francis II Was the brother of Henry and he continued in a marvellous way the devotion towards the Holy Virgin which seemed to be hereditary in the illustrious family of Lorraine. For a Prince who was accustomed to frequent the Sacraments, it would be too little to say only that he never missed the solemnities of the Holy Virgin. What I can reveal, however, is something which applies to very few Princes at his level – namely that in order to attract the attention of the Princess of Heaven in a way favourable to him, he wanted to be among the first to be enrolled in the Congregation of the Holy Virgin which was instituted in the Novitiate of the Society of Jesus in Nancy and later transferred to the College of that same Society. Since his enrolment, he has never ceased to take part in as many activities as his great affairs of state allow him. It is a most inspiring sight for the citizens of Nancy to see him every day going to join others praying in Notre-Dame-de-Bonsecours which is outside the city walls, no matter how bad the weather may be. Heaven is witness to the favours this virtuous Prince has received as a result of his devotion and those who have the honour of being nearest to him know on how many occasions Mary has shown herself to be a dear Mother to him, taking his affairs in hand and showing him with favours.

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The Virgin of Tenderness. >12th century.

SUB tuum præsidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genitrix. Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus, sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper, Virgo gloriosa et benedicta. Amen.

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.

© Peter Bloor