Rottenbuch Abbey () in Rottenbuch was founded as an Augustinian monastery in 1073 on land granted by Duke

Welf I Welf I or Welfo (died before 876) was a Swabian nobleman. He was a member of the Elder House of Welf. Welf was probably a son of Conrad I of Auxerre, and seems to have taken over his father's offices in Swabia, namely: count of Alpgau, count ...

of Bavaria and his wife

Judith of Flanders Judith of Flanders (c. 843 – 870 or later) was a Carolingian princess who became Queen of Wessex by two successive marriages and later Countess of Flanders. Judith was the eldest child of the Carolingian emperor Charles the Bald and his fir ...

. The Abbey church was constructed between 1085 and 1125 in the Romanesque style. The design of a crossing transept and free-standing tower is unusual for a Bavarian church. Rottenbuch was a center of papal loyalty during 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 ...

. Under the patronage of Emperor Louis the Bavarian in the 14th century, together with its location on the pilgrimage route to Italy, Rottenbuch became the most influential house of

Canons Regular The Canons Regular of St. Augustine are Catholic priests who live in community under a rule ( and κανών, ''kanon'', in Greek) and are generally organised into Religious order (Catholic), religious orders, differing from both Secular clergy, ...

in Germany. In the 18th century the medieval interior of the church was redecorated in the ornate High

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 ...

style by painter

Matthäus Günther Matthäus Günther (also Mathäus Günther) (7 September 1705 – 30 September 1788) was an important German painter and artist of the Baroque and Rococo era. Günther, who was born in Peissenberg (at that time: Tritschengreith), helped d ...

and stuccoist Josef Schmuzer. With the

secularization In sociology, secularization () is a multilayered concept that generally denotes "a transition from a religious to a more worldly level." There are many types of secularization and most do not lead to atheism or irreligion, nor are they automatica ...

of the Bavarian monasteries under Montgelas in 1803 the monastic buildings were pulled down and the noteworthy library sent to a paper mill; the Abbey church became a parish church, which it remains to this day.

References

External links

* Photos of the interior of the Abbey Church, in th
''Warburg Institute Iconographic Database''
1073 establishments in Europe Augustinian monasteries in Germany Monasteries in Bavaria Weilheim-Schongau {{Germany-church-stub