Saint Cecilia facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids Saint Cecilia
Saint Cecilia playing the pipe organ
Virgin and martyr
Born	200–230 AD Rome
Died	222–235 AD Rome
Venerated in	Catholic Church Eastern Orthodox Church Anglican Communion Church of Sweden
Major shrine	Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, Rome
Feast	22 November
Attributes	Flute, organ, roses, violin, harp, Baritone harpsichord, songbird, singing
Patronage	Hymns; great musicians; luthiers; poets; Albi, France; Archdiocese of Omaha; Mar del Plata, Argentina; Pipe organs

Saint Cecilia (Latin: Sancta Caecilia), also known as Cecelia, was a young Roman woman. She is honored as a virgin and martyr (someone who dies for their beliefs). She is celebrated in the Catholic Church, Orthodox Church, Anglican Church, and some Lutheran churches.

Saint Cecilia is especially known as the patron saint of music and musicians. It is said that during her wedding, while musicians played, Cecilia "sang in her heart to the Lord." Many musical pieces are written for her, and her special day, November 22, is often celebrated with concerts and music festivals.

Her name is mentioned in the main prayer of the Latin Church. The church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere in Rome was built in the 3rd century. Many believe it stands where she lived and died.

Her Life and Story
Santa Cecilia in Trastevere
What Her Name Means
Patroness of Musicians
Her Legacy Today
How She is Shown in Art
In Music
In Pop Culture
Images for kids
See also

Her Life and Story

Saints Cecilia, Valerian, and Tiburtius by Botticini

People often believe that Cecilia was a noble lady from Rome. She, along with her husband Valerian, his brother Tiburtius, and a Roman soldier named Maximus, died for their faith around the year 230 AD. This happened during the time of Emperor Alexander Severus. However, some historians think she might have died earlier, between 176 and 180 AD, in Sicily.

A popular story about Cecilia's death says that she was struck three times on the neck with a sword. Even after this, she lived for three more days. During this time, she asked the Pope to turn her home into a church.

The Ecstasy of St. Cecilia by Raphael

Saint Cecilia was first buried in the Catacomb of Callixtus. Later, her body was moved to the Church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere. In 1599, her body was found to be still in a very good state, almost as if she were just sleeping.

Cecilia is one of the most famous Roman martyrs. While some parts of her story might be more like a legend, historians agree that she was a real person who died for her faith. Her special day has been celebrated since about the fourth century.

Santa Cecilia in Trastevere

The church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere is said to be built on the very spot where Saint Cecilia lived. The first church was built there in the fourth century. Later, in the ninth century, Pope Paschal I had what were believed to be her remains buried there. In 1599, during a church renovation, Cardinal Paolo Emilio Sfondrati found her remains. He reported that they were still in a very good state, and he had them reburied.

What Her Name Means

Saint Cecilia. A work by Emile Sicard.

The name "Cecilia" was a common name for Roman women from a specific family group called the Caecilii. Over time, people created many lovely meanings for her name. For example, the poet Geoffrey Chaucer suggested it could mean "lily of heaven," "the way for the blind," or even "a heaven for people to gaze upon."

Patroness of Musicians

Saint Cecilia and an Angel by Orazio Gentileschi and Giovanni Lanfranco

The first known music festival held in Saint Cecilia's honor took place in Évreux, Normandy, in 1570.

The Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome is one of the oldest music schools in the world. It was started in 1585 by Pope Sixtus V. He named it after two important saints in music history: Pope Gregory I, who gave his name to Gregorian chant, and Saint Cecilia, the patron saint of music.

Her feast day on November 22 became a special time for musical concerts and festivals. Many famous composers and poets have created works for her. These include poems by John Dryden and Alexander Pope, and music by Henry Purcell, George Frideric Handel, Charles Gounod, and Benjamin Britten.

In Police, Poland, there is a festival of sacred and choral music called Cecyliada. It has been held every year since 1994 and is named after Saint Cecilia.

Her Legacy Today

The Martyrdom of St Cecilia by Carlo Saraceni

Saint Cecilia represents how important music is in church services.

At a convent near Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, nuns shear wool from lambs. This wool is used to make special scarves called palliums for new archbishops. The Pope blesses these lambs every January 21, and the pallia are given to the archbishops on June 29.

There is also St. Cecilia's Abbey, Ryde on the Isle of Wight. It was founded in 1882. The nuns there live a traditional life of prayer, work, and study.

A famous violin maker named Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume made violins and violas called "St. Cécile."

Saint Cecilia is remembered in the Church of England on November 22. She is also honored in the Episcopal Church liturgical calendar on January 21.

How She is Shown in Art

Cecilia is often shown playing musical instruments like a viola or a small organ. This is because of the story that she sang in her heart to God while musicians played at her wedding. The organ might have been linked to her due to a misunderstanding of the story.

A small picture of Saint Cecilia was even featured on the back of the Sir Edward Elgar £20 banknote in England, which was used until 2010.

In Music

Many musicians have been inspired by Saint Cecilia over the centuries.

Marc-Antoine Charpentier composed four sacred works about her life in the late 1600s.
Henry Purcell wrote several pieces, including "Hail! Bright Cecilia" in 1692.
George Frideric Handel created two major works for her, including "Ode for St. Cecilia's Day" (1739).
Joseph Haydn composed a "Mass for Saint Cecilia" in the 1760s.
In more recent times, Benjamin Britten wrote "Hymn to St Cecilia" based on a poem by W. H. Auden.
Paul Simon's 1970 song "Cecilia" refers to the patron saint of music.
Arvo Pärt composed "Cecilia, Roman virgin" for choir and orchestra in 2000.
The band Foo Fighters released an EP called "Saint Cecilia" in 2015.

In Pop Culture

The poem "Moschus Moschiferus" by Australian poet A. D. Hope is subtitled "A Song for St Cecilia's Day."
Alexander Pope also wrote a poem called "Ode on St. Cecilia's Day."
Geoffrey Chaucer tells the story of Cecilia in "The Second Nun's Tale" in The Canterbury Tales.
In the video game Song of Horror, a part of the game takes place in a fictional St. Cecilia's Abbey.
The British band The Vamps released the song "Oh Cecilia (Breaking My Heart)" in 2014.

Images for kids

Saint Cecilia and Saint Valerian, Lelio Orsi (c. 1555)
Domenichino, Saint Cecilia with an angel holding a musical score, (c. 1617–18).
Saint Cecilia by Raymond Monvoisin
An Angel Crowning Saints Cecilia and Valerian (1330s)
Statue from the porch of St. Cecilia, Trastevere
Stefano Maderno, St. Cecilia, 1599
Saint Cecilia Wymondley
Saint Cecilia stained glass by Edward Burne-Jones in All Saints church, Preston Bagot
Franciscan Sisters' Saint Cecilia window inspires vocations at Saint Mary's Chapel, Holy Family Convent Motherhouse in Manitowoc, WI
The Crowns
Cecilia's Trial
She distributes her goods to the poor
Her death
The apse
Detail: left side
Detail: right side