The Abteiland ("Abbey Land") is a former estate owned by Niedernburg Abbey above

Passau Passau (; ) is a city in Lower Bavaria, Germany. It is also known as the ("City of Three Rivers"), as the river Danube is joined by the Inn (river), Inn from the south and the Ilz from the north. Passau's population is about 50,000, of whom ...

. From the early 13th century until the seizure of church property under

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

in 1803, the region belonged to the ''

Hochstift In the Holy Roman Empire, the German language, German term (plural: ) referred to the territory ruled by a bishop as a prince (i.e. prince-bishop), as opposed to his diocese, generally much larger and over which he exercised only spiritual auth ...

'' or Prince-Bishopric of Passau with the

prince bishop A prince-bishop is a bishop who is also the civil ruler of some secular principality and sovereignty, as opposed to ''Prince of the Church'' itself, a title associated with cardinals. Since 1951, the sole extant prince-bishop has been the Bis ...

as its secular and spiritual head. The region lies in the

Bavarian Forest image:Zell-bayerischer-wald.jpg, The village of Zell in the Bavarian Forest The Bavarian Forest ( or ''Bayerwald'' ; ) is a wooded, low-mountain region in Bavaria, Germany, that is about 100 kilometres long. It runs along the Czech Republic, C ...

north of the

River Danube The Danube ( ; see also other names) is the second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest south into the Black Sea. A large and historically important riv ...

and east of the River Ilz. It was crossed by a historical trade route, the Goldener Steig ("Golden Trail"). Its main settlement was

Waldkirchen Waldkirchen is the biggest town in the district of Freyung-Grafenau in Germany. History Mentioned for the first time in 1203, it soon became an important trading place along the "Goldener Steig" (Golden Path), a salt-trading route between Bava ...

, which was granted wide-ranging rights by the prince bishops of Passau. The Abteiland has great significance as a cultural landscape rich in species and habitats and is viewed as a refugium for endangered plants and animals. Together with the

Neuburg Forest The Neuburg Forest () is a largely forested hill ridge and natural region in Lower Bavaria in the county of Passau and the borough of Passau. It is named after the village of Neuburg am Inn. Geography The Neuburg Forest is actually a range o ...

it forms

natural region A natural region (landscape unit) is a basic geographic unit. Usually, it is a region which is distinguished by its common natural features of geography, geology, and climate. From the ecological point of view, the naturally occurring flora and ...

no. 408 - the Passau Abteiland and Neuburg Forest - within the Upper Palatine-Bavarian Forest. In April 2011, the Abteiland Working Group was formed from the following eleven municipalities: {, class="wikitable zebra sortable" ! Municipality ! Population
2011 ! Area
(km²) ! Coordinates , - , Hauzenberg , align="right" , 12.025 , align="right" , 82,82 , , - ,

Thyrnau Thyrnau is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in 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 ...

, align="right" , 4.235 , align="right" , 33,68 , , - ,

Obernzell Obernzell () is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany. Geography Geographical location Obernzell is located in the Donau-Wald region at the Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is t ...

, align="right" , 3.850 , align="right" , 18,25 , , - ,

Untergriesbach Untergriesbach () is a Municipalities of Germany, municipality in the Passau (district), district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany. Geography Untergriesbach is located in the southern Bavarian Forest and extends high above the deep valley of th ...

, align="right" , 3.104 , align="right" , 73,60 , , - , Sonnen , align="right" , 1.447 , align="right" , 16,48 , , - ,

Wegscheid Wegscheid is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany. In November 1936, Fritz Wächtler Fritz Wächtler (7 January 1891 – 19 April 1945) was a Nazi Party official and politician who served as the ''Gauleiter'' of ...

, align="right" , 5.517 , align="right" , 80,68 , , - , Breitenberg , align="right" , 2.173 , align="right" , 29,87 , , - ,

Neureichenau Neureichenau (, , in contrast to " Old Reichenau") is a municipality in the district of Freyung-Grafenau in Bavaria in Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Balti ...

, align="right" , 4.396 , align="right" , 46,38 , , - ,

Haidmühle Haidmühle () is a municipality in the district of Freyung-Grafenau in Bavaria in Germany. Geography Geographical location The community lies in the Donau-Wald on the Studená Vltava in the Bavarian Forest, on the border with the Czech Republ ...

, align="right" , 1.388 , align="right" , 21,03 , , - ,

Jandelsbrunn Jandelsbrunn is a municipality in the district of Freyung-Grafenau in Bavaria in 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 a ...

, align="right" , 3.284 , align="right" , 42,40 , , - ,

, align="right" , 10.507 , align="right" , 80,06 , {{coord, 48, 44, N, 13, 36, E, region:DE-BY_type:city(10507), name=Waldkirchen

History

The

north of Passau was settled in a first wave in the 9th/10th century. According to a (not wholly authenticated) document, in the year 1010 King Henry II (emperor from 1014) gifted large areas north of the Danube to convent of Niedernburg in

. The name ''Abteiland'' is still used today for the former estate of the monastery between the rivers

Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...

, Ilz and Rodl and the border ridge. In the early 13th century, the region came to the

Bishopric of Passau The Diocese of Passau (; ) is a Latin diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany that is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising.Mühlviertel The Mühlviertel () is an Austrian region belonging to the state of Upper Austria: it is one of four "quarters" of Upper Austria, the others being Hausruckviertel, Traunviertel, and Innviertel. It is named after the three rivers ', ', and '. ...

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 ...

played a special role in the Abteiland. With the first written confirmation of

market rights A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...

in 1285, Waldkirchen was also received its own jurisdiction from the prince bishop of Passau, which was the lowest level of legal authority. There used to be a

pillory The pillory is a device made of a wooden or metal framework erected on a post, with holes for securing the head and hands, used during the medieval and renaissance periods for punishment by public humiliation and often further physical abuse. ...

on the market place, ''Waldkirchner Marktplatz''. The market town judge was appointed by the

prince-bishop A prince-bishop is a bishop who is also the civil ruler of some secular principality and sovereignty, as opposed to '' Prince of the Church'' itself, a title associated with cardinals. Since 1951, the sole extant prince-bishop has been the ...

and had performed functions like that of a mayor. He performed his duties along with six council members. At the annual ''E'haft'' (''Ehehaft'' = 'sitting', from the Germanic ''Ewa'' or ''Eha'' = law) meeting, legal, police and municipal matters were dealt with. All citizens and residents (non-citizens) had to participate.

Traditions

Every year in July in Waldkirchen, the Market Judge Days (''Marktrichtertage'') are held as a traditional event. They recall the time when the market was still a part of the Prince Bishopric of Passau.

References

External links

ILE Abteiland
(Website of the ILE Abteiland)
Land der Abtei
(with historical information)
Additional information about the Abteiland

Historical Atlas of Bavaria, Altbayern, Series 1, Issue: 35: Passau. Das Hochstift
(Bavarian State Library)

by the Bundesamtes für Naturschutz
Passauer Abteiland – Nordteil. Landscape fact file
by the Bundesamtes für Naturschutz East Bavaria Passau (district) Freyung-Grafenau Regions of Bavaria Bavarian Forest Natural regions of the Upper Palatine-Bavarian Forest