Ebstorf Abbey (german: Abtei Ebstorf or german: Kloster Ebstorf) is a

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

convent of

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...

s that is located near the Lower Saxon town of

Uelzen Uelzen (; officially the ''Hanseatic Town of Uelzen'', German: ''Hansestadt Uelzen'', , Low German ''Ülz’n'') is a town in northeast Lower Saxony, Germany, and capital of the county of Uelzen. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, a ...

, in Germany.

History

The abbey was founded around 1160 as the

Priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or nuns (such as the Dominicans, Augustinians, Franciscans, and Carmelites), or monasteries of monk ...

Saint Maurice Saint Maurice (also Moritz, Morris, or Mauritius; ) was an Egyptian military leader who headed the legendary Theban Legion of Rome in the 3rd century, and is one of the favorite and most widely venerated saints of that martyred group. He is the ...

for the

Premonstratensian The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular of the Catholic Church ...

Canons Regular Canons regular are priests who live in community under a rule ( and canon in greek) and are generally organised into religious orders, differing from both secular canons and other forms of religious life, such as clerics regular, designated by a ...

by Volrad von Bodwede, Count of Dannenberg, and a nephew of

Henry the Lion Henry the Lion (german: Heinrich der Löwe; 1129/1131 – 6 August 1195) was a member of the Welf dynasty who ruled as the duke of Saxony and Bavaria from 1142 and 1156, respectively, until 1180. Henry was one of the most powerful German pr ...

. By founding the priory, Volrad hoped to consolidate his influence over the region. It is mentioned in the records for the first time in 1197. It belongs to the six so-called ''Lüneklöstern'' (monasteries of Lüne) which became Lutheran

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican C ...

s following the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and i ...

. After a fire in the 13th century the house was given to the

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , found ...

nuns of

Walsrode Abbey Walsrode Abbey (German: ''Kloster Walsrode'') in Walsrode, Germany, is one of the historic monasteries of Benedictine nuns on the Lüneburg Heath in North Germany which are collectively known as the ''Lüneklöster''. Today it is a Lutheran wome ...

who established a daughter house there, and Ebstorf became a place of Marian

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...

(''Marienwallfahrtsort''). The abbey buildings, dating from the 14th century and built in a North German

Brick Gothic Brick Gothic (german: Backsteingotik, pl, Gotyk ceglany, nl, Baksteengotiek) is a specific style of Gothic architecture common in Northeast and Central Europe especially in the regions in and around the Baltic Sea, which do not have resourc ...

style, are fully preserved today, as is the church, which still has the raised nun's gallery. The ''Propstei'' (

provostry A provost is a senior official in a number of Christian Churches. Historical development The word ''praepositus'' (Latin: "set over", from ''praeponere'', "to place in front") was originally applied to any ecclesiastical ruler or dignitary. I ...

) dates to the 15th century. In the 15th century the life of the nuns changed, as a result of their being placed under the reforming program of the newly established

Bursfelde Congregation The Bursfelde Congregation, also called Bursfelde Union, was a union of predominantly west and central German Benedictine monasteries, of both men and women, working for the reform of Benedictine practice. It was named after Bursfelde Abbey. Back ...

, that demanded a stricter way of life. In 1529 the Duke of Welf, Ernest the Confessor from

Celle Celle () is a town and capital of the district of Celle, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The town is situated on the banks of the river Aller, a tributary of the Weser, and has a population of about 71,000. Celle is the southern gateway to the Lüne ...

converted the monastery to a Lutheran convent, but the transformation of the monastery was not completed until 1565. It is currently one of several

convents that are maintained by the ''Monastic Chamber of Hanover'' (german: Klosterkammer Hannover), an institution of the former

Kingdom of Hanover The Kingdom of Hanover (german: Königreich Hannover) was established in October 1814 by the Congress of Vienna, with the restoration of George III to his Hanoverian territories after the Napoleonic era. It succeeded the former Electorate of Hano ...

founded by its Prince-Regent, later King

George IV of the United Kingdom George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten y ...

, in 1818, in order to manage and preserve the estates of Lutheran convents on their behalf. It is now maintained as an institution of Hanover's successor state of

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

. Lutheran women still live there today under the authority of a Lutheran

abbess An abbess (Latin: ''abbatissa''), also known as a mother superior, is the female superior of a community of Catholic nuns in an abbey. Description In the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and Eastern Catholic), Eastern Orthodox, Coptic ...

Cultural heritage

The abbey is famous for the Ebstorf Map, a ''

mappa mundi A ''mappa mundi'' (Latin ; plural = ''mappae mundi''; french: mappemonde; enm, mappemond) is any medieval European map of the world. Such maps range in size and complexity from simple schematic maps or less across to elaborate wall maps, the ...

'' from the 13th century. The original was burned during a bombing raid in 1943 on

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

. However a faithful copy of the original can be seen in the monastery. Other points of interest are the

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

stained glass window Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

s in the ''Nonnenchor'' (nun's choir), the statues of the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jews, Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Jose ...

in the

cloisters A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against ...

which date from the 13th to 15th centuries, a figure of Saint Maurice, the

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person. I ...

of the house, a

baptismal font A baptismal font is an article of church furniture used for baptism. Aspersion and affusion fonts The fonts of many Christian denominations are for baptisms using a non-immersive method, such as aspersion (sprinkling) or affusion (pouring). ...

dating from 1310 and a

pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, access ...

built in 1615. In addition there a various medieval chests and cupboards.

References

Bibliography

*''Ein Rundgang durch Kloster Ebstorf''. Einführender Text von Michael Wolfson, Aufnahmen von Jutta Brüdern. Mit Literaturhinweisen. Königstein i. Ts. 2002 (= Die Blauen Bücher).
Sibylle Appuhn-Radtke
''Kloster Ebstorf''
DKV-Kunstführer
Nr. 176, 12. Auflage, München/Berlin
Kunstverlag.de Ebstory Abbey
on

Deutscher Kunstverlag The Deutscher Kunstverlag (DKV) is an educational publishing house with offices in Berlin and Munich. The publisher specializes in books about art, cultural history, architecture, and historic preservation. History Deutscher Kunstverlag was f ...

002 002, 0O2, O02, OO2, or 002 may refer to: Fiction *002, fictional British 00 Agent *'' 002 Operazione Luna'', *1965 Italian film * Zero Two, a '' Darling in the Franxx'' character Airports *0O2, Baker Airport *O02, Nervino Airport Astronomy *1 ...

*"Die mittelalterliche Baugeschichte des Langen Schlafhauses im Kloster Ebstorf." Volker Hemmerich. Schwerin: T. Helms, 2002

External links

Description of the monastery including video documentationwww.bad-bevensen-tourismus.decms.heidekirchen.de
{{Authority control Uelzen (district) Monasteries in Lower Saxony Premonstratensian monasteries in Germany Benedictine nunneries in Germany Christian monasteries established in the 12th century Brick Gothic Lutheran women's convents Lüneburg Heath