Himmerod Abbey (Kloster Himmerod) was a

Cistercian The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

monastery in the community of

Großlittgen Großlittgen (in Eifel dialect: ''Gruhssleehtchen'') is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Geogr ...

in the ''

Verbandsgemeinde A (; plural ) is a low-level administrative division, administrative unit in the Germany, German States of Germany, federal states of Brandenburg, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt. A is typically composed of a small group of Municipalitie ...

'' of Manderscheid in the district of

Bernkastel-Wittlich Bernkastel-Wittlich (German language, German: ''Landkreis Bernkastel-Wittlich'') is a district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the districts of Vulkaneifel, Cochem-Zell, Rhein-Hunsrück, Birkenfeld ...

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; ; ; ) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the sixteen states. Mainz is the capital and largest city. Other cities are ...

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 ...

, located in the

Eifel The Eifel (; , ) is a low mountain range in western Germany, eastern Belgium and northern Luxembourg. It occupies parts of southwestern North Rhine-Westphalia, northwestern Rhineland-Palatinate and the southern area of the German-speaking Com ...

, in the valley of the Salm. The Cistercian convent of Himmerod was dissolved in October 2017 due to financial constraints and the small number of monks. The remaining monks relocated to other abbeys. The property was conveyed to the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Trier The Diocese of Trier (), in English historically also known as ''Treves'' () from French ''Trèves'', is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic church in Germany.Saint Bernard and is a direct foundation of Clairvaux. David of Himmerod, a Cistercian mystic known for his holiness rather than miracles, was sent to the abbey by Bernard. The first church, built in the Romanesque style, was completed in 1178. In its turn it founded a daughter house,

Heisterbach Abbey Heisterbach Abbey (Kloster Heisterbach; also Petersthal, formerly Petersberg) was a Cistercian monastery in the ''Siebengebirge'' near Oberdollendorf in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Petersberg The tradition of its origin is that a knight nam ...

, in 1189. The abbey owned extensive land and vineyards. The

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

church was completed in 1751, but after secularisation in 1802 under French occupation fell into ruin.

Second foundation

In 1922 the monastery was re-founded by the settlement here of German Cistercian monks from the former

Trappist The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a Religious order (Catholic), Catholic religious o ...

monastery of Mariastern in the present

Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

."Himmerod", European Charter of the Cistercian Abbeys and Sites
/ref> The church was re-built under Abbot Vitus Recke (abbot from 1937 to 1959), and completed in 1962, and contains a famous

organ Organ and organs may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function * Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body. Musical instruments ...

by Johannes Klais. In the 1950s the abbey had a mutual aid firefighting agreement with nearby

Spangdahlem Air Base Spangdahlem Air Base (International Air Transport Association airport code, IATA: SPM, International Civil Aviation Organization airport code, ICAO: ETAD, former code EDAD) is a NATO air base with the United States Air Force as a tenant constru ...

. The

USAF The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

had similar agreements with dozens of villages surrounding the base as a public relations initiative. The new abbey founded the Abbey of the Holy Cross, Itaporanga near

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, in 1936. The oldest maintained convent building, the "Old Mill", was changed after sweeping renovation in 1998 into a museum. It contains information on the history of the Cistercians, the museum of enamel art, the mill's equipment, and also a number of cultural events. Himmerod was a member of the Mehrerau Cistercian Congregation. The last abbot (as of 2017) was Abbot Johannes.

Himmerod memorandum

From 5 October to 9 October 1950, officers of the former ''

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

'', on the authority of the West German government, met in conference at Himmerod Abbey to prepare for Chancellor

Konrad Adenauer Konrad Hermann Joseph Adenauer (5 January 1876 – 19 April 1967) was a German statesman and politician who served as the first Chancellor of Germany, chancellor of West Germany from 1949 to 1963. From 1946 to 1966, he was the first leader of th ...

to launch the re-armament of Germany. The conference produced the

Himmerod memorandum The Himmerod memorandum () was a 40-page document produced in 1950 after a secret meeting of former Wehrmacht high-ranking officers invited by Chancellor Konrad Adenauer to the Himmerod Abbey to discuss West Germany's ''Wiederbewaffnung'' (rearmame ...

(German: ''Himmeroder Denkschrift''), which laid out the prerequisites for re-armament and suggested what Germany could contribute to the defense of western Europe. This was an important step toward the official founding of the ''

Bundeswehr The (, ''Federal Defence'') are the armed forces of the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany. The is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part consists of the four armed forces: Germ ...

'' in 1955. Himmelrod Abbey in ruins about 1885

Closure

The Cistercian convent of Himmerod was dissolved in October 2017, after less than a hundred years of operation. The monastery’s abbot referred to the financial situation of the abbey as having led to the decision. The monastery’s property near the village of

was transferred to the

Diocese of Trier The Diocese of Trier (), in English historically also known as ''Treves'' () from French ''Trèves'', is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic church in Germany.Abtei Himmerod
/ref> The fishery is leased out, and it too, remains in operation. The monastery hostel is run by the abbey's support association. Besides gift articles, books and recordings, the monastery shop sells juices, mustard and honey, and also the strong Abbey beer, liqueurs, brandies or Viez to support the preservation of Himmerod."Himmeroder Rundbrief", No.9, September 2022
/ref>

Publications

The abbey ran a publishing house, the ''Himmerod Drucke'', which published over fifty works, most by Stephan Reimund Senge, a monk at Himmerod. The journal ''Unsere Liebe Frau von Himmerod'' ("Our Lady of Himmerod") appeared three times a year. The newsletter ''Himmeroder Rundbrief'', now in its forty-ninth year, continues to provide information on life at Himmerod.

References

External links

*
Himmerod Abbey website
*
The Klais Organ
*
Initiative Sudan, an aid development project of Father Stephan from Himmerod
{{Authority control Cistercian monasteries in Germany Monasteries in Rhineland-Palatinate 1130s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1134 establishments in Europe Christian monasteries established in the 1130s Buildings and structures completed in 1134