Benedict of Skalka
Benedict of Skalka or Szkalka, born Stojislav in Nitra, Hungarian Kingdom, was a Benedictine monk, now venerated as a saint. He became a hermit and lived an austere life in a cave along the Vah River. Benedict was strangled to death in 1012 by a gang of robbers looking for treasure. He is venerated in Slovakia, Hungary, Poland and the emigrant diasporas in the United States.
Life
Benedict became a monk at the St. Hippolytus Monastery on Mount Zobor near Nitra, Slovakia in the late 10th or early 11th century. He later became a hermit with his fellow saint and spiritual teacher Andrew Zorard. They lived an austere life in a cave along the Váh River near Trenčín, in modern Skalka nad Váhom, Slovakia - then part of the Kingdom of Hungary.Andrew died in 1009, but Benedict continued to live in the cave for three years until he was strangled to death in 1012 by a gang of robbers looking for treasure. The thieves dumped his body in the Váh River, but his body was found perfectly preserved a year later. In 1083 his relics were translated to the St. Emmeram's Cathedral in Nitra where they remain to this day. A biography of Benedict and Andrew was written by Maurus, Bishop of Pécs.
He was renowned for his piety and strict asceticism.