Returning
to England from a pilgrimage to Rome in the fifth century, the Christian
princess St. Ursula, accompanied by a fleet of ships full of eleven thousand
and ten other virgins, one of whom was St. Cordula, were attacked by the pagan
Huns in Cologne and, refusing to deny Christ, were martyred. However, one of
the virgins, St. Cordula, terrified by the tortures and slaughter of the
others, hid herself deep on board her ship and went undiscovered throughout the
night. When morning came, St. Cordula repented her deed and declared herself to
the Huns of her own accord, and thus was the last of the virgins to receive the
crown of martyrdom.
Almost
a millennium later, on the Feast of St. Valentine, 1277, at the church of St.
John the Baptist in Cologne, the body of St. Cordula was discovered. From the
place where Brother Ingebrad of the Order of St. John discovered her body, a
most pleasant fragrance exhaled and he saw on her forehead these words written:
“Cordula, Queen and Virgin.”
St.
Albert the Great who was in Cologne at the time, when he heard of the finding
of her relics, wept tears of joy, praised God from the depth of his soul, and
requested the bystanders to sing the Te Deum. St. Albert then vested himself in
his episcopal robes, removed the relics from under the earth, and solemnly
translated them into the church of the monks of St. John. After singing Mass, he
deposited the holy body in a suitable place, which God has since made
illustrious by many miracles (this account is according to Joachim Sighart).
The
name “Cordelia” is a derivative of Cordula. While Cordula may be a diminutive
of the Latin cors or cordis, meaning "heart,” it may also be the case that
“delia” is a diminutive of the German name Adela, meaning “noble.” While the
name “Cordula” was used in Germany in the 16th century, the name “Cordelia”
began to be popular in England following the 1608 performance of Shakespeare’s
play, “King Lear,” in which the character Cordelia is one of King Lear’s three
daughters. Shakespeare likely took this name from the legendary queen of the
Britons, Cordiella, the daughter of the legendary King Leir.
In
Shakespeare’s tragedy, King Lear’s daughters are named Goneril, Regan, and
Cordelia. When the elderly Lear requests that his daughters tell him how much
they love him in return for one third of the land of his kingdom, Goneril and
Regan give lavish speeches of flattery in order to ensure their inheritance and
ascend to power. Cordelia refuses to partake in such games, and responds, “I
love your majesty according to my bond; no more nor less.” When pressed,
Cordelia explains further:
Good my lord,
You have begot me, bred me, loved me: I
Return those duties back as are right fit,
Obey you, love you, and most honour you.
Why have my sisters husbands, if they say
They love you all? Haply, when I shall wed,
That lord whose hand must take my plight shall carry
Half my love with him, half my care and duty:
Sure, I shall never marry like my sisters,
To love my father all.
