Maria Skobtsova Poetess, nun, saint Date of Birth: 20.12.1891 Country: Germany

Biography of Maria Skobtsova

Maria Yurievna Skobtsova, also known as Elizaveta Yurievna Pilenko, was a poet, nun, and saint. She was born on December 20, 1891, in Riga, in a family of a prosecutor. After her father's resignation, the family settled on an estate near Anapa. When Yuri Pilenko was invited to become the director of the Nikitsky Botanical Garden, the family moved to Crimea. It was in Yalta, where Maria completed a girls' gymnasium. They moved again, this time to Saint Petersburg. In the northern capital, Elizaveta developed a passion for literature and became acquainted with Alexander Blok. Her first books, "Scythian Tiles," "Urali," and "Ruth," were published during this time. At the age of 19, Elizaveta returned to Anapa, where she married lawyer Kuzmin-Karavaev. In 1918, she became the mayor of the city. As a participant in the White movement, she emigrated to Paris. By that time, Elizaveta was already remarried and had two children.

In 1932, she entered a monastery and took the name Maria. As a nun, she visited women's monasteries in the Baltic states, led the Russian Student Christian Movement in France, and opened a hostel for single women in Paris. Later, a church was established alongside the hostel, and missionary courses were conducted. Understanding the intricacies of emigration, Maria founded a charitable organization to help Russians in France called "Orthodox Cause." During World War II, when the country was occupied by the Germans, Maria's mother's house became the headquarters of the Resistance. In 1943, she and her son were arrested.

Maria Skobtsova died on March 31, 1945, in the Ravensbrück concentration camp. She was canonized in 2004.