Blessed Charles the Good

Memorial

• 2 March

Profile

Born a prince, the son of King Saint Canute of Denmark and Adela of Flanders. After his father‘s murder, he was raised in the court of his maternal grandfather, Robert de Frison, Count of Flanders (part of modern Belgium. Fought in the Second Crusade. Succeeded Robert II as count of Flanders in 1119. Married into the family of the Duke of Clermont (in modern France. His rule was a continuous defense of the poor against profiteers of his time, both clerical and lay. Called the Good by popular acclamation. Reformed laws to make them more fair, supported the poor, fed the hungry, walked barefoot to Mass each day. Martyred in the church of Saint Donatian of Rheims at Bruges by Borchard, part of a conspiracy of the rich whom he had offended.

Born

• 1083

Died

• beheaded on 2 March 1127 at Bruges, Belgium
• relics at the Cathedral of Bruges

Beatified

• 1883 by Pope Leo XIII (cultus confirmed)

Patronage

• counts
• Crusaders
• Burges, Belgium, diocese of

Representation

• nobleman with a purse and a sword
• after his martyrdom in the cathedral

Additional Information

• Book of Saints, by the Monks of Ramsgate
• Catholic Online
• Heiligen 3s
• Lives of the Saints, by Father Alban Butler
• Medieval Religion Listserv, by John Dillon
• Our Sunday Visitor’s Encyclopedia of Saints

MLA Citation

• “Blessed Charles the Good“. Saints.SQPN.com. 2 March 2013. Web. 18 June 2013. <>