Career
She is honored as a "blessed" of the Order. Gertrude was the youngest of Louis and Elizabeth"s three children. Her father died while on his way to the Holy Land, shortly before she was born, which left her mother in distress.
Gertrude was scarcely two years old when her mother left her in the care of the canonesses of the Abbey of Aldenberg, where she later entered the community.
In 1248, only 21 years old, she was elected abbess and ruled over the monastery for the next 49 years. She took personal care of the residents there.
She also led a life of extreme mortification. When Pope Nicholas IV published a crusade against the Saracens, Gertrude and her community took the Crusaders" cross.
In 1270, under Gertrude"s direction, the abbey began to celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi, being one of the first to introduce this feast into Germany.
Pope Clement VI permitted the abbey to celebrate her feast day and granted indulgences to those who venerated her relics.