Langheim Abbey
Encyclopedia
Langheim Abbey was a well-known Cistercian monastery in Klosterlangheim, part of the town of Lichtenfels
in Upper Franconia
, Bavaria
, Germany
, in the Bishopric of Bamberg.
(from what became the Rotenhan
family and Redwitz from Rodach family) made a gift of the estate of Langheim to Saint Otto I, bishop of Bamberg
, who in 1132 offered it Adam of Ebrach
, abbot of the Cistercian Ebrach Abbey
, on condition that it should be used for the establishment of a new monastery of that order. The first stone was laid on 1 August 1132 and in 1142 the buildings were completed. The abbey, like Ebrach, was dedicated to the Virgin Mary, Saint John the Evangelist
and Saint Nicholas
.
The first abbot was Adam (1141–80), who succeeded in gaining the support not only of the bishops of Bamberg but of the local nobility. In consequence the new abbey rapidly acquired extensive property and the cure of many parishes. Pope Eugene III
and the emperors
granted it many privileges. It was famous at this time for its wealth and magnificence.
By about 1380, however, as result of plague and economic difficulties, the abbey administration had more or less failed, and in 1385 Lambrecht von Brunn, bishop of Bamberg, was able without resistance to divert the abbey's management and property to the cathedral chapter. In 1429 the Hussites destroyed the buildings by fire.
Langheim was able nevertheless to recover from these misfortunes and to re-build the premises and its economic stability, but in 1525, during the German Peasants' War
s, it was once again burnt down by a rioting mob.
It was re-built yet again, only to be destroyed yet again with particular brutality in 1632 by the Swedes
during the Thirty Year's War.
It took a century for the abbey to recover from this, but abbot Stephen Mösinger (1734–51) was at last able to have the monastery reconstructed on a scale and to a standard that recalled the first building. During this interval the bishops of Bamberg had again become favorable to the abbey, although they failed to restore either the property they had taken or the former privileges. The bishop did intervene in the abbey's finances, when in 1788 he suspended the then abbot on account of the huge debts that had been incurred for building works.
The final catastrophe occurred on 7 May 1802, when fire destroyed the splendid buildings erected by Stephen Mösinger and put an end to Langheim. On 23 June 1803, the community, at that time numbering forty-nine members, was secularised by a decree of the Prince Elector of Bavaria
. The monks were dispersed to various places, and the last abbot, Candide Hemmerlein, received a pension of 8000 florins, with which he retired to Thieb Castle, where he died in 1814.
, Abbess of Edelstetten"); and Simon Schreiner of the seventeenth century, who composed a treatise on the Fourteen Holy Helpers
and an "Apologia contra Lutheranos". The abbot Mauritius Knauer, a distinguished mathematician and astronomer, published a number of works on the natural sciences and also an ascetical work entitled "Tuba Coeli" (1649–64). The most prolific author was however Joachim Jaeck, who after secularisation published the results of his extensive researches on the history of Bamberg and the surrounding country.
.
near Frankenthal
, as a dependency of the abbey, a church in honour of the Fourteen Holy Helpers
, which soon became a popular place of pilgrimage. Abbot Mösinger, after the re-construction of the main abbey complex was completed, commissioned Balthasar Neumann
to re-build it as a Baroque
church. It survived the destruction of the abbey, after the dissolution of which it was entrusted to the care of the Franciscans and still stands today as the Basilica of the Vierzehnheiligen.
Lichtenfels, Bavaria
Lichtenfels is a town in Bavaria, Germany, capital of the district of Lichtenfels. It is situated on the upper course of the river Main , approx. 15 km southeast of Coburg, and 30 km northeast of Bamberg, in an area called Gottesgarten am Obermain .Lichtenfels became as of middle of the 19...
in Upper Franconia
Upper Franconia
Upper Franconia is a Regierungsbezirk of the state of Bavaria, southern Germany. It forms part of the historically significant region of Franconia , all now part of the German Federal State of Bayern .With more than 200 independent breweries which brew...
, Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, in the Bishopric of Bamberg.
History
Three brothers from the city of BambergBamberg
Bamberg is a city in Bavaria, Germany. It is located in Upper Franconia on the river Regnitz, close to its confluence with the river Main. Bamberg is one of the few cities in Germany that was not destroyed by World War II bombings because of a nearby Artillery Factory that prevented planes from...
(from what became the Rotenhan
Burg Rotenhan
Rotenhan Castle is a castle ruin about two kilometres north of the village of Eyrichshof in Lower Franconia in the south German state of Bavaria. Eyrichshof lies within the borough of Ebern in the district of Haßberge...
family and Redwitz from Rodach family) made a gift of the estate of Langheim to Saint Otto I, bishop of Bamberg
Otto of Bamberg
Saint Otto of Bamberg was a medieval German bishop and missionary who, as papal legate, converted much of Pomerania to Christianity.-Life:Otto was born into a noble family in Mistelbach, Franconia...
, who in 1132 offered it Adam of Ebrach
Adam of Ebrach
Adam of Ebrach was the first abbot of Ebrach Abbey in the area of Bamberg, Bavaria, Germany.Adam, originating from the parish of Cologne, is first recorded when entering the Cistercian monastery of Morimond Abbey in Burgundy...
, abbot of the Cistercian Ebrach Abbey
Ebrach Abbey
Ebrach Abbey was a Cistercian monastery in Ebrach in Oberfranken, Bavaria, Germany. It is located in the Bishopric of Würzburg....
, on condition that it should be used for the establishment of a new monastery of that order. The first stone was laid on 1 August 1132 and in 1142 the buildings were completed. The abbey, like Ebrach, was dedicated to the Virgin Mary, Saint John the Evangelist
John the Evangelist
Saint John the Evangelist is the conventional name for the author of the Gospel of John...
and Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas , also called Nikolaos of Myra, was a historic 4th-century saint and Greek Bishop of Myra . Because of the many miracles attributed to his intercession, he is also known as Nikolaos the Wonderworker...
.
The first abbot was Adam (1141–80), who succeeded in gaining the support not only of the bishops of Bamberg but of the local nobility. In consequence the new abbey rapidly acquired extensive property and the cure of many parishes. Pope Eugene III
Pope Eugene III
Pope Blessed Eugene III , born Bernardo da Pisa, was Pope from 1145 to 1153. He was the first Cistercian to become Pope.-Early life:...
and the emperors
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a medieval ruler who, as German King, had also received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope...
granted it many privileges. It was famous at this time for its wealth and magnificence.
By about 1380, however, as result of plague and economic difficulties, the abbey administration had more or less failed, and in 1385 Lambrecht von Brunn, bishop of Bamberg, was able without resistance to divert the abbey's management and property to the cathedral chapter. In 1429 the Hussites destroyed the buildings by fire.
Langheim was able nevertheless to recover from these misfortunes and to re-build the premises and its economic stability, but in 1525, during the German Peasants' War
German Peasants' War
The German Peasants' War or Great Peasants' Revolt was a widespread popular revolt in the German-speaking areas of Central Europe, 1524–1526. At its height in the spring and summer of 1525, the conflict involved an estimated 300,000 peasants: contemporary estimates put the dead at 100,000...
s, it was once again burnt down by a rioting mob.
It was re-built yet again, only to be destroyed yet again with particular brutality in 1632 by the Swedes
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
during the Thirty Year's War.
It took a century for the abbey to recover from this, but abbot Stephen Mösinger (1734–51) was at last able to have the monastery reconstructed on a scale and to a standard that recalled the first building. During this interval the bishops of Bamberg had again become favorable to the abbey, although they failed to restore either the property they had taken or the former privileges. The bishop did intervene in the abbey's finances, when in 1788 he suspended the then abbot on account of the huge debts that had been incurred for building works.
The final catastrophe occurred on 7 May 1802, when fire destroyed the splendid buildings erected by Stephen Mösinger and put an end to Langheim. On 23 June 1803, the community, at that time numbering forty-nine members, was secularised by a decree of the Prince Elector of Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
. The monks were dispersed to various places, and the last abbot, Candide Hemmerlein, received a pension of 8000 florins, with which he retired to Thieb Castle, where he died in 1814.
After dissolution
The remnants of the buildings after the fire were unsafe and were demolished, including the abbey church. A few structural items survive incorporated in the town centre of Klosterlangheim.Monks of Langheim
This abbey gave to the Catholic Church in Germany many distinguished bishops and also writers. These include the monk Engelrich, who wrote the "Leben der hl. Mathilde, Abtissin von Edelstetten" ("Life of Saint MechtildeMechtildis of Edelstetten
Mechtildis was Benedictine abbess and renowned miracle worker. Mechtildis was the daughter of Count Berthold of Andechs, whose wife, Sophie, founded a monastery on their estate at Diessen, Bavaria, and placed their daughter there at the age of five. In 1153, the Bishop of Augsburg placed her as...
, Abbess of Edelstetten"); and Simon Schreiner of the seventeenth century, who composed a treatise on the Fourteen Holy Helpers
Fourteen Holy Helpers
The Fourteen Holy Helpers are a group of saints venerated together in Roman Catholicism because their intercession is believed to be particularly effective, especially against various diseases...
and an "Apologia contra Lutheranos". The abbot Mauritius Knauer, a distinguished mathematician and astronomer, published a number of works on the natural sciences and also an ascetical work entitled "Tuba Coeli" (1649–64). The most prolific author was however Joachim Jaeck, who after secularisation published the results of his extensive researches on the history of Bamberg and the surrounding country.
Plass Abbey
In 1144 Langheim founded Plass Abbey in the diocese of PraguePrague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
.
Vierzehnheiligenbasilika
In 1445 Abbot Frederick Hengelein had built at Bad StaffelsteinBad Staffelstein
Bad Staffelstein is a small town in the Bavarian Administrative Region of Upper Franconia in Germany. It is known for the beautiful landscape that surrounds it, which has been given the name "Gottesgarten am Obermain"...
near Frankenthal
Frankenthal
Frankenthal is a town in southwestern Germany, in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate.- History :Frankenthal was first mentioned in 772. In 1119 an Augustinian monastery was built here, the ruins of which — known, after the founder, as the Erkenbertruine — still stand today in the town...
, as a dependency of the abbey, a church in honour of the Fourteen Holy Helpers
Fourteen Holy Helpers
The Fourteen Holy Helpers are a group of saints venerated together in Roman Catholicism because their intercession is believed to be particularly effective, especially against various diseases...
, which soon became a popular place of pilgrimage. Abbot Mösinger, after the re-construction of the main abbey complex was completed, commissioned Balthasar Neumann
Balthasar Neumann
Johann Balthasar Neumann , also known as Balthasar Neumann, was a [German] military artillery engineer and architect who developed a refined brand of Baroque architecture, fusing Austrian, Bohemian, Italian, and French elements to design some of the most impressive buildings of the period,...
to re-build it as a Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
church. It survived the destruction of the abbey, after the dissolution of which it was entrusted to the care of the Franciscans and still stands today as the Basilica of the Vierzehnheiligen.
Abbots from 1556
- 1556-1562 Friedrich Marschalk
- 1562-1572 Ludwig Fuchs
- 1572-1582 Magnus Hofmann
- 1582-1584 Wilhelm Krenich
- 1584-1592 Konrad Holzmann
- 1592-1608 Johann Bückling
- 1608-1620 Peter Schönfelder
- 1620-1626 Johann Weiger
- 1626-1631 Erasmus Behem (or Böhm)
- 1631-1637 Nikolaus Eber
- 1637-1649 Johann Gagel
- 1649-1664 Mauritius Knauer
- 1664-1677 Alberich Semmelmann
- 1677-1689 Thomas Wagner
- 1689-1690 Candidus Bergmann
- 1690-1728 Gallus Knauer
- 1728-1734 Martin Wolf
- 1734-1751 Stephan Mösinger
- 1751-1774 Malachias Limmer
- 1774-1791 Johann Nepomuk Pitius (suspended from 1788)
- 1791-1803 Candidus Hemmerlein