Burchard of Bellevaux

Burchard of Bellevaux (c. 1100-1165) was a Cistercian monk and author who was known for his work Apologia de barbis (A Defense of Beards). A student of the Cistercian reformer Bernard of Clairvaux, in 1136, he became abbot of the monastery of Balerne, a Benedictine monastery that adopted the Cistercian reforms. After 22 years there, he became the abbot of Bellevaux, where he composed the Apologia de barbis sometime before his death around 1165.