Ottobeuren Abbey
Encyclopedia
Ottobeuren is a Benedictine
abbey
, located in Ottobeuren
, near Memmingen
in the Bavaria
n Allgäu
, Germany
.
, the martyr. Of its early history little is known beyond the fact that Toto, its first abbot, died about 815 and that Saint Ulrich
was its abbot in 972. In the 11th century its discipline was on the decline, until Abbot Adalhalm (1082–94) introduced the Hirsau Reform. The same abbot began to restore the decaying buildings, which were completed, with the addition of a convent for noble ladies, by his successor, Abbot Rupert I (1102–45). Under the rule of the latter the newly founded Marienberg Abbey
was recruited with monks from Ottobeuren. His successor, Abbot Isengrim (1145–80), wrote Annales minores and Annales majores.
Blessed Conrad of Ottobeuren was abbot from 1193 until his death in 1227, described by the Benedictines as a "lover of the brethren and of the poor" http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0727.htm#conr.
In 1153, and again in 1217, the abbey was consumed by fire. In the 14th and 15th centuries it declined so completely that at the accession of Abbot Johann Schedler (1416–43) only six or eight monks were left, and its annual revenues did not exceed 46 silver marks. Under Abbot Leonard Wiedemann (1508–46) it again began to flourish: he erected a printing establishment and a common house of studies for the Swabia
n Benedictines. The latter, however, was soon closed, owing to the ravages of the Thirty Years' War
.
Ottobeuren became an imperial abbey in 1299, but lost this status after the Prince-Bishop of Augsburg had become Vogt
of the abbey. These rights were renounced after a court case at the Reichskammergericht
in 1624. In 1710 the abbey regained its status as an imperial abbey, but did not become a member of the Swabian Circle
.
The most flourishing period in the history of Ottobeuren began with the accession of Abbot Rupert Ness (1710–40) and lasted until its secularization in 1802. From 1711-1725 Abbot Rupert erected the present monastery, the architectural grandeur of which has merited for it the name of "the Swabian Escorial
". In 1737 he also began the building of the present church, completed by his successor, Anselm Erb, in 1766. In 1803 Ottobeuren became part of Bavaria
. At that time the territory had about 12,000 inhabitants and an area of some 165 km² (63.7 sq mi).
. It was granted the status of an independent abbey in 1918.
As of 1910, the community consisted of five fathers, sixteen lay brother
s, and one lay novice, who had under their charge the parish of Ottobeuren, a district school, and an industrial school for poor boys.
Ottobeuren has been a member of the Bavarian Congregation
of the Benedictine Confederation
since 1893.
s. The old organ, the masterpiece of French organbuilder Karl Joseph Riepp (1710–75), is actually a double organ; it is one of the most treasured historic organs in Europe. It was the main instrument for 200 years, until 1957 when a third organ was added by G. F. Steinmeyer & Co, renovated and augmented in 2002 by Johannes Klais, making 100 stops available on five manuals (or keyboards).
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
abbey
Abbey
An abbey is a Catholic monastery or convent, under the authority of an Abbot or an Abbess, who serves as the spiritual father or mother of the community.The term can also refer to an establishment which has long ceased to function as an abbey,...
, located in Ottobeuren
Ottobeuren
Ottobeuren is a municipality in Bavaria, Germany, located 10 km southeast of Memmingen near the A7. It is famous for Ottobeuren Abbey, situated next to the Basilica....
, near Memmingen
Memmingen
Memmingen is a town in the Bavarian administrative region of Swabia in Germany. It is the central economic, educational and administrative centre in the Danube-Iller region. To the west the town is flanked by the Iller, the river that marks the Baden-Württemberg border...
in the 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...
n Allgäu
Allgäu
The Allgäu is a southern German region in Swabia. It covers the south of Bavarian Swabia and southeastern Baden-Württemberg. The region stretches from the prealpine lands up to the Alps...
, 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...
.
First foundation
It was founded in 764 by Blessed Toto, and dedicated to St. AlexanderAlexander of Bergamo
Saint Alexander of Bergamo is the patron saint of Bergamo. Alexander may simply have been a Roman soldier or resident of Bergamo who was tortured and killed for not renouncing his Christian faith. Details of his life are uncertain, but subsequent Christian legends consider him a centurion of the...
, the martyr. Of its early history little is known beyond the fact that Toto, its first abbot, died about 815 and that Saint Ulrich
Ulrich of Augsburg
Saint Ulrich , sometimes spelled Uodalric or Odalrici, was Bishop of Augsburg and a leader of the Roman Catholic Church in Germany. He was the first saint to be canonized.-Family:...
was its abbot in 972. In the 11th century its discipline was on the decline, until Abbot Adalhalm (1082–94) introduced the Hirsau Reform. The same abbot began to restore the decaying buildings, which were completed, with the addition of a convent for noble ladies, by his successor, Abbot Rupert I (1102–45). Under the rule of the latter the newly founded Marienberg Abbey
Marienberg Abbey
Marienberg Abbey is a Benedictine abbey in Mals, Vinschgau in South Tyrol, northern Italy. It was founded in 1149 or 1150 by Ulrich von Tarasp and other nobles.It has maintained a long tradition of education and, at 1,340 m, it is Europe’s highest abbey...
was recruited with monks from Ottobeuren. His successor, Abbot Isengrim (1145–80), wrote Annales minores and Annales majores.
Blessed Conrad of Ottobeuren was abbot from 1193 until his death in 1227, described by the Benedictines as a "lover of the brethren and of the poor" http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0727.htm#conr.
In 1153, and again in 1217, the abbey was consumed by fire. In the 14th and 15th centuries it declined so completely that at the accession of Abbot Johann Schedler (1416–43) only six or eight monks were left, and its annual revenues did not exceed 46 silver marks. Under Abbot Leonard Wiedemann (1508–46) it again began to flourish: he erected a printing establishment and a common house of studies for the Swabia
Swabia
Swabia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany.-Geography:Like many cultural regions of Europe, Swabia's borders are not clearly defined...
n Benedictines. The latter, however, was soon closed, owing to the ravages of the Thirty Years' War
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
.
Ottobeuren became an imperial abbey in 1299, but lost this status after the Prince-Bishop of Augsburg had become Vogt
Vogt
A Vogt ; plural Vögte; Dutch voogd; Danish foged; ; ultimately from Latin [ad]vocatus) in the Holy Roman Empire was the German title of a reeve or advocate, an overlord exerting guardianship or military protection as well as secular justice...
of the abbey. These rights were renounced after a court case at the Reichskammergericht
Reichskammergericht
The Reichskammergericht or Imperial Chamber Court was one of two highest judicial institutions in the Holy Roman Empire, the other one being the Aulic Council in Vienna. It was founded in 1495 by the Imperial Diet in Worms...
in 1624. In 1710 the abbey regained its status as an imperial abbey, but did not become a member of the Swabian Circle
Swabian Circle
The Swabian Circle was an Imperial Circle of the Holy Roman Empire established in 1500 on the territory of the former German stem-duchy of Swabia. However, it did not include the Habsburg home territories of Swabian Austria, the member states of the Swiss Confederacy nor the lands of the Alsace...
.
The most flourishing period in the history of Ottobeuren began with the accession of Abbot Rupert Ness (1710–40) and lasted until its secularization in 1802. From 1711-1725 Abbot Rupert erected the present monastery, the architectural grandeur of which has merited for it the name of "the Swabian Escorial
El Escorial
The Royal Seat of San Lorenzo de El Escorial is a historical residence of the king of Spain, in the town of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, about 45 kilometres northwest of the capital, Madrid, in Spain. It is one of the Spanish royal sites and functions as a monastery, royal palace, museum, and...
". In 1737 he also began the building of the present church, completed by his successor, Anselm Erb, in 1766. In 1803 Ottobeuren became part 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...
. At that time the territory had about 12,000 inhabitants and an area of some 165 km² (63.7 sq mi).
Second foundation
In 1834 King Louis I of Bavaria restored it as a Benedictine priory, dependent on St. Stephen's Abbey, AugsburgSt. Stephen's Abbey, Augsburg
St. Stephen's Abbey, Augsburg is a Benedictine monastery, formerly a house of Augustinian canonesses, in Augsburg in Bavaria, Germany.-First foundation:...
. It was granted the status of an independent abbey in 1918.
As of 1910, the community consisted of five fathers, sixteen lay brother
Lay brother
In the most common usage, lay brothers are those members of Catholic religious orders, particularly of monastic orders, occupied primarily with manual labour and with the secular affairs of a monastery or friary, in contrast to the choir monks of the same monastery who are devoted mainly to the...
s, and one lay novice, who had under their charge the parish of Ottobeuren, a district school, and an industrial school for poor boys.
Ottobeuren has been a member of the Bavarian Congregation
Bavarian Congregation
The Bavarian Congregation is a congregation of the Benedictine Confederation consisting of monasteries in Bavaria, Germany.It was founded on 26 August 1684 by the Blessed Pope Innocent XI .-First Congregation:...
of the Benedictine Confederation
Benedictine Confederation
The Benedictine Confederation of the Order of Saint Benedict is the international governing body of the Order of Saint Benedict.-Origin:...
since 1893.
Monks of Ottobeuren
Noteworthy among monks of Ottobeuren are:- Nicolas Ellenbog, humanist, d. 1543
- Jacob Molitor, the learned and saintly prior, d. 1675
- Albert Krey, the hagiographer, d. 1713
- Fr. Schmier, canonist, d. 1728
- Augustine Bayrhamer, d. 1782 historian
- Maurus Feyerabend, d. 1818, historian
- Abbot Honoratus Goehl (1767–1802), a promoter of true church music, and founder of two schools
- Ulric Schiegg, the mathematician and astronomer, d. 1810.
Music
Ottobeuren Abbey has one of the richest music programs in Bavaria, with concerts every Saturday. Most concerts feature one or more of the Abbey's famous organPipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
s. The old organ, the masterpiece of French organbuilder Karl Joseph Riepp (1710–75), is actually a double organ; it is one of the most treasured historic organs in Europe. It was the main instrument for 200 years, until 1957 when a third organ was added by G. F. Steinmeyer & Co, renovated and augmented in 2002 by Johannes Klais, making 100 stops available on five manuals (or keyboards).
External links
Ottobeuren Abbey websiteSee also
- List of Carolingian monasteries
- Carolingian architectureCarolingian architectureCarolingian architecture is the style of north European Pre-Romanesque architecture belonging to the period of the Carolingian Renaissance of the late 8th and 9th centuries, when the Carolingian family dominated west European politics...
- Carolingian artCarolingian artCarolingian art comes from the Frankish Empire in the period of roughly 120 years from about AD 780 to 900 — during the reign of Charlemagne and his immediate heirs — popularly known as the Carolingian Renaissance. The art was produced by and for the court circle and a group of...