Blessed Villana de’Botti was born in Florence in 1332. She was a very pious child, and when she was 13, she ran away from home to join a convent. The sisters sent her home, and soon after, her parents married her off to Rosso di Piero.
After her rejection and marriage, Villana changed, becoming lazy and worldly, concerned only with pleasure. One day, as she was dressing, she saw her reflection in the mirror as that of a demon. She was struck by her sins, and went immediately to the Dominican Fathers.
Villana became a Dominican tertiary. She focused on her vocation as a wife, and spent hours in prayer, reading Scripture and the lives of the saints. She was gifted in prophecy, and although many ridiculed her, even those who hated her eventually saw her as a living saint.
In 1361, Blessed Villana died of natural causes. Her body was taken to Santa Maria Novella, and cared for by Dominican Fathers, but they were unable to bury her for a month due to the constant stream of mourners. Villana was beatified in 1824 by Pope Leo XII.
