Born: 8 March 1864, Finland
Died: 25 December 1928
Country most active: Finland
Also known as: NA
The following is excerpted from “400 Outstanding Women of the World and the Costumology of Their Time” by Minna Moscherosch Schmidt, published in 1933.
“The Friend of Prisoners.” Mathilda Wrede was born in 1864 in Vaasa; her father, Baron Carl Gustaf Wrede, was governor of that province. At the age of eighteen she experienced a deep religious awakening. About this time she — quite accidentally — turned her attention to the fate of prisoners and began visiting them in the prisons.
This was the beginning of a unique career which lasted half a century.
The whole life of Mathilda Wrede was dedicated to prisoners and other sufferers. Not being wealthy she lived simply, dividing everything among the poor. She visited the prisons regularly, speaking to the inmates chiefly of religious matters; she had an incredible gift of softening even the most hardened criminals. She was a woman of great personal courage and a keen sense of humor. It was also her habit to visit the families of the prisoners whom she continued to help after their release, never avoiding any personal unpleasantness.
“The Friend of Prisoners” died on Christmas morning in 1929, deeply loved by the poor and miserable. She had, indeed, lived up completely to her adopted motto: “my life, my thoughts, my time, my strength – all to God and to the souls of my fellows.”