Weingarten Abbey or St. Martin's Abbey (german: Reichsabtei Weingarten until 1803, then merely ) is a

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') , foun ...

monastery on the Martinsberg (''St. Martin's Mount'') in Weingarten near

Ravensburg Ravensburg ( Swabian: ''Raveschburg'') is a city in Upper Swabia in Southern Germany, capital of the district of Ravensburg, Baden-Württemberg. Ravensburg was first mentioned in 1088. In the Middle Ages, it was an Imperial Free City and an imp ...

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

(

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

First foundation

Originally founded as a nunnery at Altdorf shortly around 900, the nuns were replaced by canons, but again returned in 1036. Welf I, Duke of Bavaria exchanged the nuns for the Benedictine monks of

Altomünster Abbey Altomünster Abbey (Kloster Altomünster) was a monastery in the small Bavarian market town of Altomünster. History A small monastery was founded here by and named after Saint Alto, a wandering monk, before 760. The ''vita'' of Alto, likely wri ...

in 1047. The monastery being destroyed by fire in 1053, Welf ceded his castle on the neighbouring hill to the monks, and thenceforth the monastery became known as ''Weingarten'' ("vineyard"),Ott, Michael. "Weingarten." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 15. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 19 October 2022 which is documented from about 1123. (In 1865, the village took the name of the monastery to become the present town of Weingarten). In 1126,

Henry IX, Duke of Bavaria Henry IX (107513 December 1126), called the Black, a member of the House of Welf, was Duke of Bavaria from 1120 to 1126. Life and reign Henry was the second son of Duke Welf I of Bavaria (died 1101) from his marriage with Judith, daughter of Co ...

, withdrew here after his abdication; he died the same year and was buried in the abbey church. Upon her death in 1095,

Judith of Flanders Judith of Flanders (circa 843 – circa 870) was a Carolingian princess as the daughter of Charles II, Emperor of the Romans ("Charles the Bald"), who became Queen (consort) of Wessex by two successive marriages and later Margravine (consort ...

bequeathed to the abbey her library, containing a number of illustrated manuscripts. The monks worked, among other things, at

manuscript illumination An illuminated manuscript is a formally prepared document where the text is often supplemented with flourishes such as borders and miniature illustrations. Often used in the Roman Catholic Church for prayers, liturgical services and psalms, th ...

. Their most famous work is the ''Berthold Sacramentary'' of 1217, now in the

Pierpont Morgan Library The Morgan Library & Museum, formerly the Pierpont Morgan Library, is a museum and research library in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It is situated at 225 Madison Avenue, between 36th Street to the south and 37th ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Also of especial note is the ''Welfenchronik'', written and illustrated in about 1190, chronicling and glorifying the

House of Welf The House of Welf (also Guelf or Guelph) is a European dynasty that has included many German and British monarchs from the 11th to 20th century and Emperor Ivan VI of Russia in the 18th century. The originally Franconian family from the Meus ...

which had its seat at

nearby. The monastery was elevated to the status of a ''

Reichsabtei Princely abbeys (german: Fürstabtei, ''Fürststift'') and Imperial abbeys (german: Reichsabtei, ''Reichskloster'', ''Reichsstift'', ''Reichsgotthaus'') were religious establishments within the Holy Roman Empire which enjoyed the status of impe ...

'', independent of all territorial lordship except that of the emperor, in 1274. It acquired territory of , stretching from the

Allgäu The Allgäu (Standard German: , also Allgovia) is a region in Swabia in southern Germany. It covers the south of Bavarian Swabia, southeastern Baden-Württemberg, and parts of Austria. The region stretches from the pre-alpine lands up to the ...

to the

Bodensee Lake Constance (german: Bodensee, ) refers to three bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Lak ...

and including many forests and vineyards, and was one of the richest monasteries in southern Germany. Its discipline never seriously declined, except during the latter part of the fifteenth, and the early part of the sixteenth century, owing chiefly to the encroachments of a few

commendatory abbot A commendatory abbot ( la, abbas commendatarius) is an ecclesiastic, or sometimes a layman, who holds an abbey '' in commendam'', drawing its revenues but not exercising any authority over its inner monastic discipline. If a commendatory abbot is ...

s and the oppression of the bailiffs. Immediately before its suppression in 1802 it comprised forty-eight monks, ten of whom resided at the dependent priory of Hofen. In 1803, during the

German Mediatisation German mediatisation (; german: deutsche Mediatisierung) was the major territorial restructuring that took place between 1802 and 1814 in Germany and the surrounding region by means of the mass mediatisation and secularisation of a large numbe ...

, the abbey was dissolved. At first, it became part of the

Principality of Nassau-Orange-Fulda Nassau-Orange-Fulda (sometimes also named ''Fulda and Corvey'') was a short-lived principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1803 to 1806. It was created for William Frederick, the son and heir of William V, Prince of Orange, the ousted stadthol ...

, and then in 1806 part of the

Kingdom of Württemberg The Kingdom of Württemberg (german: Königreich Württemberg ) was a German state that existed from 1805 to 1918, located within the area that is now Baden-Württemberg. The kingdom was a continuation of the Duchy of Württemberg, which existe ...

. The buildings were used inter alia as a factory and as a barracks for a regiment of infantry; the abbey church as the parish church of the town of Weingarten.

Second foundation

In 1922, Weingarten was re-founded and re-settled by Benedictines from

Beuron Archabbey Beuron Archabbey (in German Erzabtei Beuron, otherwise Erzabtei St. Martin; in Latin ''Archiabbatia Sancti Martini Beuronensis''; Swabian: ''Erzabtei Beira'') is a major house of the Benedictine Order located at Beuron in the upper Danube val ...

and from the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

Abbey of Erdington (in a suburb of

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...

) which had itself been settled from Beuron. In 1940, the monks were expelled by the

National Socialists Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

, but were able to return after the end of the war. The monks are responsible for the management of the "

Blutritt The Blutritt (literal translation: Blood Ride) is an equestrian procession in honor of a relic containing the blood of Jesus Christ. There are several cities in Germany holding Blutritte, however, the dates are not unified. Blutritt in Weinga ...

", or

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 ...

to the Reliquary of the Holy Blood in the abbey church; they also run a guesthouse. Weingarten belongs to the

Beuronese Congregation The Beuronese Congregation, or Beuron Congregation, is a union of mostly German or German-speaking religious houses of both monks and nuns within the Benedictine Confederation. The congregation stands under the protection of Saint Martin of Tour ...

of the

Benedictine Confederation The Benedictine Confederation of the Order of Saint Benedict ( la, Confœderatio Benedictina Ordinis Sancti Benedicti) is the international governing body of the Order of Saint Benedict. Origin The Benedictine Confederation is a union of monasti ...

. It is a monastery of two ecclesiastical traditions or rites — one part of the monks follow the

Roman Rite The Roman Rite ( la, Ritus Romanus) is the primary liturgical rite of the Latin Church, the largest of the ''sui iuris'' particular churches that comprise the Catholic Church. It developed in the Latin language in the city of Rome and, while di ...

, the other part the

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

. In 2009 only four monks remained in Weingarten. The abbey was vacated on October 16, 2010; the Catholic

Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart The Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany. It is a suffragan in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Freiburg in Baden-Württemberg, '' B ...

stepped in as a new tenant and tried to find a new monastic community to install here. In 2014, the Diocese offered the rooms to the

State of Baden-Württemberg State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * '' State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our ...

as a

refugees A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution.

home. Due to dilapidated sanitary installations and issues of monument protection this was declined at first; instead parts of the rooms used by the Academy of the Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart (see below) were rededicated as refugees home. In 2015, the number of refugees rose steeply. In July and August 2015 a part of the former abbey rooms was cut off and prepared to serve as additional ''Bedarfsorientierte Erstaufnahmeeinrichtung (BEA)'' (auxiliary first admittance/initial reception facility for refugees). At end of October 2015 about 130 refugees were accommodated there and about 40 at the refugee home in the rooms of the Academy.

Buildings

The abbey and the St. Martin's

Basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its nam ...

are a major attraction on the tourist route known as the ''Oberschwäbische Barockstrasse'' (

Upper Swabian Baroque Route The Upper Swabian Baroque Route (''Oberschwäbische Barockstraße'') is a tourist theme route through Upper Swabia, following the themes of "nature, culture, baroque". The route has a length of about 500 km (approximately 310 miles). It was ...

). In 1715, the Romanesque abbey church, constructed between 1124 and 1182, was largely demolished, and replaced between 1715 and 1724 by a large and richly decorated

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including ...

church designed in the Italian-German Baroque style by

Franz Beer Franz Beer (3 July 1659 – 19 January 1726), also known as Franz Beer von Blaichten, was an Austrian architect during the Baroque period, mainly working on church buildings at monasteries in southern Germany, chiefly in Upper Swabia, and Swi ...

. The frecoes are by

Cosmas Damian Asam Cosmas Damian Asam (29 September 1686 – 10 May 1739) was a German painter and architect during the late Baroque period. Born in Benediktbeuern, he lived in Rome from 1711 to 1713 to study at the Accademia di San Luca with Carlo Maratta. ...

. The church is the second largest church in

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Württ ...

. and is the largest Baroque church in Germany. The 102 meter long church is known as the "

Swabia Swabia ; german: Schwaben , colloquially ''Schwabenland'' or ''Ländle''; archaic English also Suabia or Svebia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany. The name is ultimately derived from the medieval Duchy of ...

n St. Peter's" since this church is almost exactly one-half the size of St. Peter's Basilica in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

.City of Weingarten
accessed August 25, 2008 The church was intended to stand within a monastic site built to the ideal layout, but this undertaking was only partially completed as the north wing would have blocked the ''

via regia The Via Regia (Royal Highway) is a European Cultural Route following the route of the historic road of the Middle Ages. There were many such ''viae regiae'' associated with the king in the medieval Holy Roman Empire. History Origins The V ...

'' or imperial road. Following the order on April 27, 1728 to stop construction on the north wing, the southern wing was extended and the east wing was completed. In 1956 the church was declared a

papal The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

basilica minor In the Catholic Church, a basilica is a designation given by the Pope to a church building. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectural sense (a rectangular ...

. Within the church is the famous '' Gabler Organ'', a church

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

that was built between 1735 and 1750 by Joseph Gabler. The organ has over 60 registers, 169 ranks, 63 voicesThe World's Largest Organs
The Organ Site; accessed August 25, 2008 and over 6600

pipes Pipe(s), PIPE(S) or piping may refer to: Objects * Pipe (fluid conveyance), a hollow cylinder following certain dimension rules ** Piping, the use of pipes in industry * Smoking pipe ** Tobacco pipe * Half-pipe and quarter pipe, semi-circula ...

. A wing of the abbey precincts accommodates the present monastery. Other parts of the former abbey house the ''Pädagogische Hochschule Weingarten'' and the Academy of the

Relic of the Holy Blood of Jesus

The greatest treasure of Weingarten was its famous relic of the Precious Blood, still preserved in the church of Weingarten. Its legend runs thus: Longinus, the soldier who opened Jesus's side with a lance, caught some of the Sacred Blood and preserved it in a leaden box, which later he buried at

Mantua Mantua ( ; it, Mantova ; Lombard and la, Mantua) is a city and '' comune'' in Lombardy, Italy, and capital of the province of the same name. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the Italian Capital of Culture. In 2017, it was named as the Eur ...

. Being miraculously discovered in 804, the relic was solemnly exalted by

Pope Leo III Pope Leo III (died 12 June 816) was bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 26 December 795 to his death. Protected by Charlemagne from the supporters of his predecessor, Adrian I, Leo subsequently strengthened Charlemagne's position ...

, but again buried during the Hungarian and Norman invasions. In 1048 it was re-discovered and solemnly exalted by

Pope Leo IX Pope Leo IX (21 June 1002 – 19 April 1054), born Bruno von Egisheim-Dagsburg, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 February 1049 to his death in 1054. Leo IX is considered to be one of the most historically ...

in the presence of the emperor, Henry III, and many other dignitaries. It was divided into three parts, one of which the pope took to Rome, another was given to the emperor, Henry III, and the third remained at Mantua. Henry III bequeathed his share of the relic to

Baldwin V, Count of Flanders Baldwin V ( 1012 – 1 September 1067) was Count of Flanders from 1035 until his death. He secured the personal union between the counties of Flanders and Hainaut and maintained close links to the Anglo-Saxon monarchy, which was overthrown by h ...

, who gave it to his daughter Juditha. After her marriage to Welf I, Duke of Bavaria, Juditha presented the relic to Weingarten. The solemn presentation took place in 1090, on the Friday after the feast of the Ascension, and it was stipulated that annually on the same day, which came to be known as ''Blutfreitag'', the relic should be carried in solemn procession. Numerous scholars have detailed the various chronological and political problems with this narrative, which was fabricated in order to imbue the relic with cultural grandeur and legitimacy. The procession was prohibited in 1812, but since 1849 it has again taken place every year. It is popularly known as the ''Blutritt''. The relic is carried by a rider, ''der heilige Blutritter'', on horseback, followed by many other riders, and many thousands of people on foot. The reliquary, formerly of solid gold, set with numerous jewels, and valued at about 70,000 florins, was confiscated by the Government at the suppression of the monastery and replaced by a gilded copper imitation.

Abbots of Weingarten

* Alto c. 750-ca. 770 (in Altomünster) * Marinus * Etto c. 780 * Gelzo 780-792 * ... * Rudolf c. 1000-1025 * Eberhard c. 1025-c. 1040 * Heinrich I 1040-c. 1070 (move to Weingarten 1055) * Beringer c. 1070-c. 1080 * Adilhelm of Luxemburg c. 1080-c. 1088 * Walicho c. 1088-c. 1108 * Kuno Truchseß of Waldburg-Thann c. 1109-1132 * Arnold c. 1133-c. 1140 * Gerhard Truchseß of Waldburg-Thann c. 1141-c. 1149 * Burkhard c. 1149-c. 1160 * Dietmar of Matsch c. 1160-c. 1180 * Marquard of Triberg c. 1180-c. 1181 * Werner of Markdorff c. 1181-c. 1188 * Saint Meingoz of Lechsgemünd c. 1188-1200 * Berthold of Heimburg 1200-1232 * Hugh de Montfort 1232-1242 * Konrad I of Wagenbach 1242-1265 * Hermann of Biechtenweiler 1265-1299 * Friedrich Heller von Hellerstein 1300-1315 * Konrad II von Ibach 1315-1336 * Konrad III von Überlingen 1336-1346 * Heinrich II von Ibach 1346-1363 * Ludwig von Ibach-Heldenberg 1363-1393 * Johann I von Essendorf 1393-1418 * Johann II Blaarer von Guttingen und Wartensee 1418-1437 * Erhard von Freybank 1437-1455 (d. 1462) * Jobst Penthelin von Ravensburg 1455-1477 * Kaspar Schieck 1477-1491 * Hartmann von Knorringen-Burgau 1491-1520 * Gerwig Blarer von Görsperg 1520-1567 * Johann III Halblizel 1567-1575 * Johann Christoph Rastner von Zellersberg 1575-1586 (d. 1590) * Georg Wegelin 1586-1627 * Franz Dietrich 1627-1637 * Domenicus I Laumann von Liebenau 1637-1673 * Alfons von Stadelmayer 1673-1683 * Willibald Kobold 1683-1697 * Sebastian Hyller 1697-1730 * Alfons II Jobst 1730-1738 * Placidus Renz 1738-1745 (d. 1748) * Domenicus II Schnitzer 1746-1784 * Anselm Ritter 1784-1803 New foundation: * Ansgar Höckelmann 1922–1929, † 1943 * Michael von Witkowski 1929–1933, † 1945 * Conrad Winter 1933–1953, † 1957 * Wilfrid Fenker 1953–1975, † 1975 * Dr. Adalbert Metzinger 1975–1982, † 1984 * Dr. Lukas Weichenrieder 1982-2004 ** Archabbot Theodor Hogg of Beuron, Abbot-Administrator 2004-2007 ** P. Basilius Sandner, Prior-Administrator 2007-2009 ** Dr. Albert Schmidt, Abbot-Administrator 2009–2010

Other burials

* Welf II, Count of Swabia (†1030) * Judith of Flanders, Countess of Northumbria (†1095) * Welf I, Duke of Bavaria (†1101) * Welf II, Duke of Bavaria (†1120) *

Wulfhilde of Saxony Wulfhilde Billung of Saxony (1072 – 29 December 1126 in Weingarten Abbey) was the eldest daughter of Magnus, Duke of Saxony and his wife, Sophia of Hungary. She married Duke Henry IX of Bavaria. As a result of this marriage, part of the ...

(†1126)

Notes

References

* Michael Heinlen, ''An Early Image of a Mass of St. Gregory and Devotion to the Holy Blood at Weingarten Abbey'', Gesta, Vol. 37, No. 1 (1998), pp. 55–62

External links

*
Pädagogische Hochschule
*
Academy of the Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart
*
Klosterfestspiele
{{Authority control Imperial abbeys disestablished in 1802–03 States and territories established in 1274 Benedictine monasteries in Germany Monasteries in Baden-Württemberg Christian monasteries established in the 11th century Basilica churches in Germany Church buildings with domes Burial sites of the House of Welf Ravensburg (district) Burial sites of the House of Flanders