Saint Bernard of Menthon

Saint Bernard of Menthon or Bernard of Aosta or Saint Bernard of Montjoux was a Catholic priest and founder of the Great St Bernard Hospice, as well as its associated Canons Regular of the Hospitaller Congregation of Great Saint Bernard. Bernard was likely born in Italy. In popular legend later disputed it is said that he was born in the Château de Menthon, near Annecy, then in the County of Savoy, a part of the Kingdom of Burgundy. He was descended from a rich and noble family and received a thorough education in Paris. When he had reached adulthood, he decided to devote himself to the service of the Church and refused an honorable marriage proposed by his father. It is said that he had to sneak out of the castle on the night before an arranged wedding, and that during his flight from the castle, he threw himself from his window, only to be caught by angels and lowered gently to the ground 40 feet (12 meters) below. Placing himself under the direction of Peter, the Archdeacon of Aosta, under whose guidance he rapidly progressed, Bernard was ordained a priest and worked as a missionary in the mountain villages. Later, on account of his learning and virtue, he was appointed to succeed his mentor as archdeacon of the cathedral, giving him charge of the government of the diocese, directly under the bishop. For 42 years, he continued to preach the Gospel to these people and even into many cantons of Lombardy, effecting numerous conversions and working many miracles. The last act of Saint Bernard's life was the reconciliation of two noblemen whose strife threatened a fatal outcome. He died in 1008 in the Imperial Free City of Novara and was interred in the monastery of St. Lawrence. Since ancient times, there has been a path across the Pennine Alps leading from the Aosta Valley to the Swiss canton of Valais. The traditional route of this pass is covered with perpetual snow from seven to eight feet deep, and drifts sometimes accumulate to the height of forty feet.