Saint Catherine of Siena (25 March 1347 in Siena – 29 April 1380 in Rome), born Catherine Benincasa, was a tertiary of the Dominican Order, and a Scholastic philosopher and theologian. She was born in Siena, Italy, to Giacomo di Benincasa, a cloth dyer who ran his enterprise with the help of his sons, and Lapa Piagenti, possibly the daughter of a local poet.The house where Catherine grew up is still in existence. Born in 1347, she arrived when the black death struck the area; Siena was badly ravaged.
She also worked to bring the papacy of Gregory XI back to Rome from its displacement in France, and to establish peace among the Italian city-states. She was proclaimed a Doctor of the Church in 1970. She is one of the two patron saints of Italy, together with Francis of Assisi.
This edition of her letters is specially formatted and includes a Table of Contents.
