Roskilde Abbey or Our Lady's Abbey, Roskilde (''Roskilde Kloster'' or ''Vor Frue Kloster''), was a nunnery dedicated to

Saint Mary the Virgin Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

. The abbey was located at Roskilde on the Danish island of Zealand. It was founded in the early 12th century for Benedictine nuns, but in 1177 became part of the

Cistercian The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, 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 ...

reform movement. The abbey was suppressed in 1536 during the Protestant Reformation in Denmark. It is now the site the

Old Church of Our Lady, Roskilde The Old Church of Our Lady ( da, Gammel Vor Frue Kirke) is an 11th-century brick church in Roskilde on the Danish island of Zealand. History According to Saxo Grammaticus, the church consecrated to Our Lady was built by Svend Nordmand who was bish ...

(''Gammel Vor Frue Kirke''). Gammel Vor Frue Kirke Roskilde Denmark entrance

History

Roskilde Abbey was chiefly known for the tomb of Saint Margrethe of Roskilde, also known as Margaret of Ølse or Margaret of Højelse, who died at Ølsemagle or Højelse in 1176. She was married to Herlog in Ølsemagle near Kjøge. Margrethe was murdered by her husband and had been buried as a suicide on the beach at Køge. As a person who committed suicide, she was buried with no religious ceremony. After miracles were declared to have happened near her grave, her remains were moved to Roskilde Abbey in 1176 by

Absalon of Lund Absalon (21 March 1201) was a Danish statesman and prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the bishop of Roskilde from 1158 to 1192 and archbishop of Lund from 1178 until his death. He was the foremost politician and church father of Denma ...

Bishop of Roskilde The former Diocese of Roskilde () was a diocese within the Roman-Catholic Church which was established in Denmark some time before 1022. The diocese was dissolved with the Reformation of Denmark and replaced by the Protestant Diocese of Zealand ...

, a kinsman of Margrethe; he arranged for the construction of a suitable shrine in the church, and transferred the nunnery to the Cistercians in the following year. Despite Absalon's best efforts, and also despite the local veneration, Margrethe was never formally canonised. The shrine was nevertheless later declared a place of pilgrimage by the Pope, and the nuns were allotted one third of the income generated by it. Despite all efforts, however, the center of the '' cultus'' remained the small chapel built near Margrethe's original grave on the beach.

References

Other Sources

Ancient See of Roskilde
Centre for Dominican Studies of Dacia

Den katolske kirke

Centre for Dominican Studies of Dacia History of Roskilde Benedictine monasteries in Denmark Cistercian monasteries in Denmark Cistercian nunneries in Denmark Catholic Church in Denmark Christian monasteries established in the 12th century Roskilde Benedictine nunneries in Denmark Buildings and structures in Region Zealand 1536 disestablishments in Denmark Monasteries dissolved under the Danish Reformation {{Denmark-struct-stub