Katherine von Bora

Biography of Katharine von Bora, wife of Martin Luther. Born in 1499, she was the daughter of an impoverished nobleman. In 1504 she went to the convent school of the Benedictine order in Brehna (near Halle) and entered the convent of Nimbschen, near Grimma in 1508. She took her vows and became a nun, then left the order in 1523 and went to live in Wittenberg. Following a trend across Europe -- the marriage of former nuns and monks -- she became the wife of Martin Luther.