Blessed Eberhard von Kumbd

Eberhard of Kumbd (also known as "de Comede / Comeda" or "of Stahleck"; born 1165; died November 30, 1191, at the Cistercian nunnery of Kumbd in the Hunsrück) was a blessed subdeacon. He was born the son of the ministerialis Wolfram in Bacharach, below Stahleck Castle. Eberhard spent his youth with his family at the court of Count Palatine Conrad at Stahleck and Heidelberg castles. After unsuccessful attempts to be admitted as a monk to Schönau Abbey (Odenwald), he founded Kumbd Abbey on land belonging to the nobleman Heinrich von Dyck. He populated it with nuns from the Aulhausen convent and his own family members. In the following period, he frequently traveled between Stahleck and Heidelberg. He died of an illness in 1191. He was soon venerated regionally as a saint. Around 1220, likely at Eberbach Abbey, a biography of his life was written, which emphasizes his saintly life and describes his illness as a spiritual ecstasy. This work is also a significant source for the early history of Heidelberg Castle and the city of Heidelberg, as well as for the history of the Cistercian nuns in the Middle Rhine region.