Margaret of Scotland, Saint

Margaret of Scotland, Saint, d. 1093, queen consort of Malcolm III and sister of Edgar Atheling. She was married to Malcolm c.1070. A deeply religious woman, she worked to replace the Celtic practices of the Scottish church with those of Rome. She did this partly by bringing many English priests into Scotland and founding new monasteries. She was generous to the poor and led a life of extraordinary piety. She was canonized in 1250. Feast: June 10 or, in Scotland, Nov. 16.

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Margaret of Scotland, Saint

(born c. 1045, probably Hungary—died Nov. 16, 1093, Edinburgh; canonized 1250; feast day November 16, Scottish feast day June 16) Patron saint of Scotland. Sister of Edgar the Aetheling, she married Malcolm III Canmore, and three of their sons succeeded to Scotland's throne. She founded abbeys, worked for justice, improved conditions for the poor, and persuaded Malcolm to initiate a series of ecclesiastical reforms that transformed Scotland's religious and cultural life.