Franz Liszt wrote his 'Deux Légendes' in between 1863 and 1865, and they were first published in 1866. At the time of writing, Liszt was greatly fascinated by all things religious, and, partly because of the sudden death of his daughter Blandine in september 1862, was going through a personal crisis. He went to Rome to live like a monk and think about his future. He was visited by Pope Pius IX, and eventually, in 1865, he became an abbé.
