Reichenbach Priory () was a

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 ...

monastery, located at Klosterreichenbach, now part of Baiersbronn in

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...

in Germany.

History

The monastery was founded, against the background of the

Investiture Controversy The Investiture Controversy or Investiture Contest (, , ) was a conflict between church and state in medieval Europe, the Church and the state in medieval Europe over the ability to choose and install bishops (investiture), abbots of monasteri ...

and the

Hirsau Reforms William of Hirsau (; – 5 July 1091) was a Benedictine abbot and monastic reformer. He was abbot of Hirsau Abbey, for whom he created the ''Constitutiones Hirsaugienses'', based on the uses of Cluny, and was the father of the Hirsau Reforms, whi ...

, as a

priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. They were created by the Catholic Church. Priories may be monastic houses of monks or nuns (such as the Benedictines, the Cistercians, or t ...

Hirsau Abbey Hirsau Abbey, formerly known as Hirschau Abbey, was once one of the most important Benedictine abbeys of Germany. It is located in the Hirsau borough of Calw on the northern slopes of the Black Forest mountain range, in the present-day state of ...

, from where it was settled, in 1082; in 1085 the church was dedicated to

Saint Gregory the Great Pope Gregory I (; ; – 12 March 604), commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great (; ), was the 64th Bishop of Rome from 3 September 590 until his death on 12 March 604. He is known for instituting the first recorded large-scale mission from Rom ...

by Bishop Gebhard of

Konstanz Konstanz ( , , , ), traditionally known as Constance in English, is a college town, university city with approximately 83,000 inhabitants located at the western end of Lake Constance in the Baden-Württemberg state of south Germany. The city ho ...

. The

Vögte An , sometimes simply advocate, (German, ), or (French, ), was a type of medieval office holder, particularly important in the Holy Roman Empire, who was delegated some of the powers and functions of a major feudal lord, or for an institutio ...

(lords protectors) of the monastery were the

Counts of Eberstein The County of Eberstein was a territory within the Holy Roman Empire, situated in the southwest of modern Germany. From 1085 up into the 13th century, the Counts of Eberstein lived in the castle known today as Alt Eberstein which lies on a moun ...

, but the equivalent rights over Hirsau lay with the

Counts of Württemberg Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

, who considered that as Reichenbach was a priory of Hirsau, their rights should extend there also. The conflict between the two factions continued until the

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

, when the monastery was turned into a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

establishment in 1603. It was re-catholicised during the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

and occupied by monks from

Wiblingen Abbey Wiblingen Abbey was a former Benedictine abbey which was later used as barracks. Today its buildings house several departments of the medical faculty of the University of Ulm. The former abbey is located south of the Confluence (geography), ...

, who however had to leave again after the

Peace of Westphalia The Peace of Westphalia (, ) is the collective name for two peace treaties signed in October 1648 in the Westphalian cities of Osnabrück and Münster. They ended the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) and brought peace to the Holy Roman Empire ...

in 1648. Since then the village of Klosterreichenbach which had developed around the monastery has remained

. The buildings of the former monastery have been partially restored in the 19th and 20th century. The church is now the parochial Lutheran church of the village.Klöster in Baden-Württemberg: Benediktiner Priorat Reichenbach - Geschichte
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References

Monasteries in Baden-Württemberg Benedictine monasteries in Germany 1082 establishments in Europe Christian monasteries established in the 1080s Freudenstadt (district) {{BadenWürttemberg-struct-stub