Göss Abbey
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Göss Abbey () is a former
Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...
nunnery and former cathedral in Göss, now a part of
Leoben Leoben () is a Styrian city in central Austria, located on the Mur River, Mur river. With a population in 2023 of about 25,140 it is a local industrial centre and hosts the University of Leoben, which specialises in mining. The Peace of Leoben, ...
in
Styria Styria ( ; ; ; ) is an Austrian Federal states of Austria, state in the southeast of the country. With an area of approximately , Styria is Austria's second largest state, after Lower Austria. It is bordered to the south by Slovenia, and cloc ...
,
Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
. After the abbey's dissolution in 1782 the church, now a
parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...
, was the seat of the short-lived Bishopric of Leoben.


History

The nunnery was founded in 1004 by Adula or Adela of Leoben, wife of Count Aribo I, and her son, also called Aribo, the future
archbishop of Mainz The Elector of Mainz was one of the seven Prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire. As both the Archbishop of Mainz and the ruling prince of the Electorate of Mainz, the Elector of Mainz held a powerful position during the Middle Ages. The Archb ...
, on the family's ancestral lands, and was settled by canonesses from
Nonnberg Abbey Nonnberg Abbey () is a Order of Saint Benedict, Benedictine monastery in Salzburg, Austria. Founded by Saint Rupert of Salzburg, it is the oldest continuously existing convent, nunnery in the German-speaking world. The monastery complex is today ...
in
Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...
. The first abbess was Kunigunde, sister of Archbishop Aribo. It was made an
imperial abbey Princely abbeys (, ''Fürststift'') and Imperial abbeys (, ''Reichskloster'', ''Reichsstift'', ''Reichsgotthaus'') were religious establishments within the Holy Roman Empire which enjoyed the status of imperial immediacy (''Reichsunmittelbarke ...
by
Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV (; 11 November 1050 – 7 August 1106) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1084 to 1105, King of Germany from 1054 to 1105, King of Italy and List of kings of Burgundy, Burgundy from 1056 to 1105, and Duke of Bavaria from 1052 to 1054. He was t ...
, in 1020. The
Benedictine Rule The ''Rule of Saint Benedict'' () is a book of precepts written in Latin by St. Benedict of Nursia (c. AD 480–550) for monks living communally under the authority of an abbot. The spirit of Saint Benedict's Rule is summed up in the motto of th ...
was introduced in the 12th century. Göss Abbey functioned for centuries as a centre for the
Styria Styria ( ; ; ; ) is an Austrian Federal states of Austria, state in the southeast of the country. With an area of approximately , Styria is Austria's second largest state, after Lower Austria. It is bordered to the south by Slovenia, and cloc ...
n aristocracy to have their daughters educated and if necessary accommodated, and entry was strictly limited to members of the nobility. The nunnery, the last remaining imperial abbey on
Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...
lands, was dissolved in 1782 in the course of the rationalist reforms of
Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II (13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from 18 August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 29 November 1780 until his death. He was the eldest son of Empress Maria Theresa and her husband, Francis I, ...
, and from 1786 served for a short time as the seat of the newly founded Bishopric of Leoben, of which the former abbey church, dedicated to
Saint Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...
and
Saint Andrew Andrew the Apostle ( ; ; ; ) was an apostle of Jesus. According to the New Testament, he was a fisherman and one of the Twelve Apostles chosen by Jesus. The title First-Called () used by the Eastern Orthodox Church stems from the Gospel of Jo ...
, was the cathedral. The first and only bishop died in 1800, and from 1808 the diocese was administered by the Bishops of Seckau until it was formally abolished in 1859. In 1827 the premises were auctioned off and acquired by the wheelwrights' co-operative of
Vordernberg Vordernberg is a municipality in the district of Leoben in the Austrian state of Styria Styria ( ; ; ; ) is an Austrian Federal states of Austria, state in the southeast of the country. With an area of approximately , Styria is Austria's sec ...
, who were primarily interested in the forests of the former abbey's estates. In 1860 the buildings were acquired by a brewer from
Graz Graz () is the capital of the Austrian Federal states of Austria, federal state of Styria and the List of cities and towns in Austria, second-largest city in Austria, after Vienna. On 1 January 2025, Graz had a population of 306,068 (343,461 inc ...
(the nunnery had had its own brewer since 1459) and have since then been used as a brewery, the ''Brauerei Göß''.


Buildings and contents

The former abbey church, briefly the cathedral of Leoben, is now used as a parish church. It is a large late
Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, a Germanic people **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Gothic alphabet, an alphabet used to write the Gothic language ** Gothic ( ...
building containing an early Romanesque
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 ...
beneath the
choir A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...
, some important early
Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, a Germanic people **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Gothic alphabet, an alphabet used to write the Gothic language ** Gothic ( ...
fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...
es in the chapel of
Saint Michael Michael, also called Saint Michael the Archangel, Archangel Michael and Saint Michael the Taxiarch is an archangel and the warrior of God in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. The earliest surviving mentions of his name are in third- and second- ...
in the Zackenstil or "zigzag style", and an imposing roof. The famous Göss
chasuble The chasuble () is the outermost liturgical vestment worn by clergy for the celebration of the Eucharist in Western-tradition Christian churches that use full vestments, primarily in Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran churches. In the Eastern ...
(''Gößer Ornat''), a valuable piece of Romanesque silk embroidery, is now preserved in the Museum für angewandte Kunst in
Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
. Now lost are the former parish church, the graveyard and the buildings formerly to the west of the abbey church. The ''Brunnhöfl'' ("fountain courtyard"), still largely extant, is well known. A curiosity on display in the premises is a rare specimen of a reusable coffin of 1784 with an opening bottom that deposited the bodies inside into a common grave. A product of Josephine rationalism, the intention was to save local authorities the expense of coffins in pauper funerals, but it was a deeply unpopular measure and the coffins were withdrawn after only a few months.see :de:Josephinischer Gemeindesarg


Abbesses of Göss

*Kunigund I, 1020–1027 *Wilburgis, 1040 *Richardis, 1066 *Margaretha, sometime in the 2nd half of the 11th century *Hemma, sometime between 1100 and 1146 * Adelheid of Spanheim, 1146–1177 *Ottilie I of Guttenberg, 1188–1203 *Ottilie II, 1203–1230 *Kunigund II, 1239–1269 *Herburgis von Ehrenfels, 1271–1283 *Euphemia, 1283–1298 *Herradis von Breitenfurt, 1298–1322 *Berta von Pux und Pranckh, 1322–1338 *Diemut, 1340–1349 *Katharina von Strettweg, 1349–1354 *Gertraut von Hannau, 1355–1372 *Katharina von Truthan, 1381–1398 *Aloisia von Herberstorf, 1399–1421 *Gertrud von Helfenberg, 1421–1428 *Anna von Herberstorf, 1428–1463 *Bennigna Grassler, 1470–1474 *Ursula von Silberberg, 1474–1497 *Margaretha von Harbach, 1497–1505 *Veronika von Ratmanstorf, 1505–1514 *Margaretha von Mindorf, 1514–1523 *Barbara von Spangstein, 1523–1543 *Amalia von Leisser, 1543–1566 *Barbara von Liechtenstein, 1566–1573 *Anna von Harrach, 1573–1576 *Florientina von Putterer, 1576–1602 *Regina von Schrattenbach, 1602–1611 *Margaretha von Kuenburg, 1611–1640 *Maria Johanna von Kollonitsch, 1640–1657 *Maria Benedikta von Schrattenbach, 1657–1695 *Katharina Benedikta von Stürgkh, 1695–1706 *Maria Mechthildis von Berchthold, 1706–1737 *Maria Antonia von Überacker, 1737–1751 *Maria Henrica von Poppen, 1751–1779 *Maria Gabriela von Schaffmann, 1779–1782


Notes


External links


Bundesdenkmalamt (BDA): Stift Göss
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goss Abbey Benedictine monasteries in Austria Monasteries in Styria 1004 establishments in Europe Christian monasteries established in the 1000s Benedictine nunneries in Austria Tourist attractions in Styria 1020s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1020 establishments in Europe 1782 disestablishments in the Holy Roman Empire Roman Catholic cathedrals in Austria