Gymnasium Paulinum is a
Gymnasium (secondary) school in
Münster
Münster (; ) is an independent city#Germany, independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a ...
,
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...
,
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. It was founded in around 797 and is claimed to be the oldest school in Germany.
Early history
Gymnasium Paulinum was established by
Ludger the missionary in 797. He had been instructed by
Charlemagne
Charlemagne ( ; 2 April 748 – 28 January 814) was List of Frankish kings, King of the Franks from 768, List of kings of the Lombards, King of the Lombards from 774, and Holy Roman Emperor, Emperor of what is now known as the Carolingian ...
in 793 to preach Christianity in north-western
Saxony
Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...
, and subsequently established a monastery in the centre of the former Frankish stronghold of Mimigernaford (also Mimigardeford or Miningarvard), which was later to be known as Münster. He also established a monastic school for future members of the clergy. In 805, when Ludger was appointed
Bishop of Münster, the school became a cathedral school. The new "Schola Paulina" was dedicated to
St. Paul.
Latest developments
On October 9, 2007, the Gymnasium Paulinum was awarded the title "School of Europe" (
Europaschule) as one of the first of 15 schools in the province of North Rhine-Westphalia.
Notable alumni
*
Heinrich Brüning, Chancellor of Germany from 1930 to 1932
*
Alfred Flechtheim, German Jewish art dealer, art collector, journalist and publisher
*
Bernhard von Galen, prince-bishop of Münster
*
Johann Glandorp, 16th century humanist, theologian, and scholar
*
Leonard Landois, physiologist
*
Hermann Löns, journalist and writer
*
Josef Pieper, philosopher
*
Hans Tietmeyer, economist
See also
*
List of Jesuit sites
This list includes past and present buildings, facilities and institutions associated with the Society of Jesus. In each country, sites are listed in chronological order of start of Jesuit association.
Nearly all these sites have be ...
External links
Gymnasium Paulinum
Schools in North Rhine-Westphalia
Educational institutions established in the 8th century
790s establishments
Culture in Münster
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