Thorn Abbey or the Imperial Abbey of Thorn was an

imperial abbey Princely abbeys (, ''Fürststift'') and Imperial abbeys (, ''Reichskloster'', ''Reichsstift'', ''Reichsgotthaus'') were religious establishments within the Holy Roman Empire which enjoyed the status of imperial immediacy (''Reichsunmittelbarke ...

of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

in what is now the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. It was founded in the 10th century and remained independent until 1794, when it was occupied by French troops. The self-ruling abbey enjoyed

imperial immediacy In the Holy Roman Empire, imperial immediacy ( or ) was the status of an individual or a territory which was defined as 'immediate' () to Emperor and Empire () and not to any other intermediate authorities, while one that did not possess that stat ...

and belonged to the

Lower Rhenish-Westphalian Circle Lower may refer to: * ''Lower'' (album), 2025 album by Benjamin Booker *Lower (surname) *Lower Township, New Jersey *Lower Receiver (firearms) *Lower Wick Lower Wick is a small hamlet located in the county of Gloucestershire, England. It is sit ...

. At the time Thorn Abbey was invaded by the French revolutionaries in 1794, its territory was composed of three non-contiguous parts totaling 52.1 km². In addition, the abbess shared rule over nearby areas totaling 35 km². The abbey's territory was divided into four "quarters", each administered by two mayors. The population in 1796 was 2,975 inhabitants. In 1797, the abbey was officially dissolved by the French. The Baroque interior survived the restoration but the spire was replaced with a massive neo-Gothic bell tower.

Foundation

Abdijkerk Thorn - Ramen H-Ansifridus H-Hilsonidis

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 ...

double monastery was founded by Count

Ansfried of Utrecht Saint Ansfried (also Ansfrid, Ansfridus) of Utrecht sometimes called Ansfried the younger (died 3 May 1010 near Leusden) was Count of Huy and the sword-bearer for Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor. He became Bishop of Utrecht in 995. He appears to have ...

and his wife Hereswint, countess of Strijen, in the late tenth century on land owned by Hereswint at

Thorn Thorn(s) or The Thorn(s) may refer to: Botany * Thorns, spines, and prickles, sharp structures on plants * ''Crataegus monogyna'', or common hawthorn, a plant species Comics and literature * Rose and Thorn, the two personalities of two DC Comi ...

."Archaeological site Thorn - The Abby of Thorn", Hart van Limburg
/ref> Hereswint was to be the first abbess but died on her way there; and Benedicta took her place.

Abbey structure

The community of women came only from the high nobility. The Abbey served as a convent school for daughters of the nobility. It is likely that Thorn had belonged to the Benedictine order originally. It probably changed, however, in the 12th century, to a free community of secular canonesses (

Damenstift The term (; ) is derived from the verb (to donate) and originally meant 'a donation'. Such donations usually comprised earning assets, originally landed estates with serfs defraying dues (originally often in kind) or with vassal tenants of noble ...

). In 1310, the members of the abbey stressed their secular status and claimed never to have been Benedictine. Hochblick_auf_Abteikirche_St

In the 18th century, the collegiate ladies, or canonesses, were, in principle, required to reside in the abbey all year, except for at most six weeks per year. However, for 600

florins The Florentine florin was a gold coin (in Italian ''Fiorino d'oro'') struck from 1252 to 1533 with no significant change in its design or metal content standard during that time. It had 54 grains () of nominally pure or 'fine' gold with a pu ...

, ladies could buy themselves freedom; although in theory they were still required to provide six weeks of choral service, this was not always observed in practice. This possibility of buying freedom appears to have been used frequently. Some ladies belonged to several abbeys. Maria Josepha of Hatzfeld and Gleichen, for example, was a member of the abbeys at Thorn and

Essen Essen () is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and Dortmund, as well as ...

for 46 years. During this time, she resided in

Essen Abbey Essen Abbey () was a community of secular canonesses for women of high nobility that formed the nucleus of modern-day Essen, Germany. A chapter of male priests were also attached to the abbey, under a dean. In the medieval period, the abbess ...

for four years, but never in Thorn. The abbey district contained a curia building for the deaconess and five houses for the ladies; some built themselves houses outside the abbey precincts. In the 14th century, a new

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, a Germanic people **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Gothic alphabet, an alphabet used to write the Gothic language ** Gothic ( ...

church was built.

History

The imperial immediacy of the abbey was confirmed in 1292 by King Adolf of Nassau. Under Emperor Maximilian I, the abbey was under the special imperial protection. In the imperial matriculation register at

Worms The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive catalogue and list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scien ...

, the abbey was recorded as ''

reichsunmittelbar In the Holy Roman Empire, imperial immediacy ( or ) was the status of an individual or a territory which was defined as 'immediate' () to Emperor and Empire () and not to any other intermediate authorities, while one that did not possess that stat ...

''. The matriculation duties, however, were transferred to the Counts of

Lippe Lippe () is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Herford, Minden-Lübbecke, Höxter, Paderborn, Gütersloh, and district-free Bielefeld, which forms the region Ostwestfalen-Lippe. ...

. The abbey was a member the Lower Rhenish-Westphalian Circle and the Rhenish College of Imperial Prelates. In the 17th century the governorship of the

Spanish Netherlands The Spanish Netherlands (; ; ; ) (historically in Spanish: , the name "Flanders" was used as a '' pars pro toto'') was the Habsburg Netherlands ruled by the Spanish branch of the Habsburgs from 1556 to 1714. They were a collection of States of t ...

sought to restrict the imperial immediacy. The abbesses resisted these attempts successfully. In the 18th century, the abbess held the title of Princess. Several abbesses were concurrently heads of

. The territory was occupied by French troops in 1794 and later annexed by France. In 1815, the

Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon, Napol ...

awarded the territory to the

Kingdom of the United Netherlands The United Kingdom of the Netherlands is the unofficial name given to the Kingdom of the Netherlands as it existed from 1815 to 1839. The United Netherlands was created in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars through the fusion of territories t ...

. The abbey property, the monastery, the palace of the abbess and the other buildings were confiscated and sold to the highest bidders and usually demolished for construction material, with only the abbey church surviving. The abbey Church of St. Michael became a parish church.

Abbesses

* 982–?: Hilsondis (or Hilswinde?) * 1010–?: Benedicta * ?–?: Godchildis * ?–?: Adelaide * Before 1217: Elizabeth * 1217–?: Jutta * 1231–1269: Hildegond de Born * 1273–1304: Guda von Rennenberg * 1310–1337: Margaret of Bautersheim I. * 1337: Isonde of Wied * 1337–1378: Margaret II of Heinsberg * 1389–1397: Margaretha III of Horne Perwez * 1404–1446: Mechtilde of Horne * 1446-1454: Jacoba of Loon-Heinsberg * 1454–1473: Else of Buren * 1473–1486: Gertrude de Sombreffe * 1486–1531: Eva of Isenburg * Disputed claim during this period * 1531–1577: Margaretha IV of Brederode * 1577–1579: Josina I of Manderscheid * 1579–1604: Josina II of the Mark * 1604–1631: Anna of the Mark * 1631–1632:

Josina Walburgis of Löwenstein-Rochefort Josina Walburgis van Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rochefort (1615-1683) was sovereign Princess Abbess of Thorn Abbey from 1631 until 1632. She was born to count Johann Dietrich von Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rochefort (1585-1644) and Josina de la Marck (1583 ...

* 1632–1646: Anna Eleonora of Staufen (simultaneously also Abbess of

) * 1646–1647: Anna Catherina of Salm-Reifferscheid * 1647–1690:

Anna Salome of Manderscheid-Blankenheim Anna Salome of Manderscheid-Blankenheim (12 December 162815 March 1691) was Abbess of Thorn Abbey from 1648 to 1688, and the abbess of Essen Abbey from 1688 until her death. Life Anna was a daughter of Count John Arnold of Manderscheid-Blank ...

(from 1690 to 1691 she was abbess of Essen) * 1690–1706: Eleanor of Löwenstein-Rochefort * 1706–1717: Anna Juliana of Manderscheid-Blankenstein * 1717–1776:

Countess Palatine Francisca Christina of Sulzbach Countess Palatine Francisca Christina of Sulzbach (16 May 1696 in Sulzbach – 16 July 1776 in Essen) was the Princess-abbess of Essen Abbey and Thorn Abbey. She led Essen Abbey from 1726 to 1776, the longest of any Essen abbess. Her tenure ...

(she was also Abbess of Essen) * 1776–1795:

Maria Kunigunde of Saxony Maria Kunigunde of Saxony (Maria Kunigunde Dorothea Hedwig Franziska Xaveria Florentina; 10 November 1740 in Warsaw – 8 April 1826 in Dresden) was Princess-Abbess of Essen and Thorn. She was a titular Princess of Poland, Lithuania and Saxo ...

(she was also Abbess of Essen)

References

External links