Aldeneik Abbey () is a former Benedictine abbey in Aldeneik, currently a mainly residential parish of

Maaseik Maaseik (; ) is a city and municipality in the Belgian province of Limburg. Both in size (close to 77 km2) and in population (approx. 25,000 inhabitants, of whom some 3,000 non-Belgian), it is the 8th largest municipality in Limburg. The to ...

, in the province of

Limburg Limburg or Limbourg may refer to: Regions * Limburg (Belgium), a province since 1839 in the Flanders region of Belgium * Limburg (Netherlands), a province since 1839 in the south of the Netherlands * Diocese of Limburg, Roman Catholic Diocese in ...

in eastern

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

. It was founded in 728. The Benedictine nuns were replaced by canons in the 10th century. In the 16th century the canons moved to nearby Maaseik, and Aldeneik was abandoned.

History

According to the '' vita'' of Harlindis and Relindis (written around 860), these two sisters in 720 founded a

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

along the river

Meuse The Meuse or Maas is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a total length of . History From 1301, the upper ...

, on territory belonging to their father Adelard. With the support of Willibrord of Utrecht, the abbey was officially established, adhering to the rule of

Saint Benedict Benedict of Nursia (; ; 2 March 480 – 21 March 547), often known as Saint Benedict, was a Great Church, Christian monk. He is famed in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Lutheran Churches, the Anglican Communion, and Old ...

, and the two sisters became

abbess An abbess (Latin: ''abbatissa'') is the female superior of a community of nuns in an abbey. Description In the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and Eastern Catholic), Eastern Orthodox, Coptic, Lutheran and Anglican abbeys, the mod ...

es. The abbey was probably destroyed by

Viking Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9� ...

raids in the 9th century. A century later it was given to Richer,

Bishop of Liège A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

, who in 952 made it a religious

chapter Chapter or Chapters may refer to: Books * Chapter (books), a main division of a piece of writing or document * Chapter book, a story book intended for intermediate readers, generally age 7–10 * Chapters (bookstore), Canadian big box bookstore ...

with 12 canons. Under the leadership of their abbot they continued to live, work and pray in Aldeneik for more than six centuries. In 1571, during the wars following the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...

, the canons - with their treasure - took refuge in the nearby town of Maaseik. Here, the predecessor of the church of Saint Catherine became the chapter's private church. The canons sold their property in Aldeneik in order to buy houses in Maaseik where they continued to live peacefully for another 240 years. After the arrival of the French revolutionary troops in 1793, the chapter was dissolved in 1797. The church fell into disrepair and was demolished. In 1840-45 the current Neoclassical church was built, but the chapter was never restored. At the original abbey location in Aldeneik only the heavily-restored former abbey church remains, which still serves as a parish church and is now dedicated to Saint Anne (

Church of Saint Anne, Aldeneik The Church of Saint Anne (Dutch language, Dutch: ''Sint-Annakerk'') is a partly Romanesque architecture, Romanesque, partly Gothic architecture, Gothic church in Aldeneik, Belgium. History Originally, the church was part of Aldeneik Abbey, a Bene ...

). Nothing of the cloisters, nor the later

chapter house A chapter house or chapterhouse is a building or room that is part of a cathedral, monastery or collegiate church in which meetings are held. When attached to a cathedral, the cathedral chapter meets there. In monasteries, the whole communi ...

or canon's houses have been preserved.

Treasure

The treasure of the abbey, preserved in the church of Saint Catherine in Maaseik, is presented in a small museum located in the

crypt A crypt (from Greek κρύπτη (kryptē) ''wikt:crypta#Latin, crypta'' "Burial vault (tomb), vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, Sarcophagus, sarcophagi, or Relic, religiou ...

of the church. The main treasure is a

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand or typewritten, as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in some indirect or automated way. More recently, the term has ...

of the early 8th century, the ''

Codex Eyckensis The eighth-century Codex Eyckensis is a Gospel Book based on two constituent manuscripts that were bound as a single codex from (presumably) the twelfth century until 1988. The Codex Eyckensis is the oldest book in Belgium. Since the eighth century ...

'', considered to be the oldest book in Belgium. An important collection of medieval textiles consists of a garment said to have belonged to Saint Relindis and

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...

liturgical Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and participation in the sacred through activities reflecting praise, thanksgiving, remembra ...

embroidery dating from the 8th or 9th century. Several other

relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains or personal effects of a saint or other person preserved for the purpose of veneration as a tangible memorial. Reli ...

s of the abbey founders, Harlindis and Relindis, have survived in the treasury. Other important pieces in the collection are

reliquaries A reliquary (also referred to as a ''shrine'', ''chasse'', or ''phylactery'') is a container for relics. A portable reliquary, or the room in which one is stored, may also be called a ''feretory''. Relics may be the purported or actual physic ...

(some dating back to the 9th century), liturgical vessels made of gold and silver,

parament Paraments or parements (from Late Latin ''paramentum'', "adornment", ''parare'', "to prepare", "equip") are both the hangings or ornaments of a room of state, and the ecclesiastical vestments. Paraments include the liturgical hangings on and aro ...

s, and ancient

s. File:Maaseik.Catharinakerk.kerkschat018.jpg, ''Codex Eyckensis'' (8th century) File:Maaseik, schatkamer St-Catharinakerk 08.jpg, ''Velamen of Harlindis'' (silk, 8th or 9th century) File:Maaseik, schatkamer St-Catharinakerk 04.jpg, Maxilla reliquary (silver, 10th century) File:Maaseik.Catharinakerk.kerkschat017.jpg, Relics of Harlindis and Relindis (1652)

References

{{coord, 51.1020, 5.8056, type:landmark_region:BE, display=title Christian monasteries in Limburg (Belgium) Benedictine monasteries in Belgium 728 establishments Churches completed in the 720s 8th-century churches