Hrabanus Maurus (around 776-856), an important scholar of the early medieval times, was raised at a Benedictine monastery in Fulda in Hesse. In 802, as a young monk, Maurus went to Tours to Alkuin, who gave him the surname Maurus, named after the favorite disciple of Saint Benedict. In 804 he returned to Fulda where he was ordained a priest in 814. In 822 he was appointed abbot of the monastery, in 847 archbishop of Mainz. Thanks to Maurus Fulda became the most important place for handing down classical antiquity. His numerous works were handed down in more than 1,200 writings. His debut feature, an illustrated poetry under the title "De laudibus sancte crucis opus", was published in print for the first time in 1503 and has represented a highlight in the history of character poems.