Bremen Cathedral Monastery

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The Bremen St. Petri Cathedral today.

The Bremen Cathedral Monastery (often referred to as the Bremen Cathedral Chapter ) was founded between 787 and 805 and existed until 1654 when it was dissolved in the course of the Peace of Westphalia and the Swedish secularization . The Bremen St. Petri Cathedral was the monastery’s cathedral church and was under the patronage of the Apostle Peter and the Virgin Mary .

history

founding

The first bishop of Bremen: Willehad (late medieval woodcut)

An exact dating of the foundation cannot be clearly specified based on the surviving sources. Missionary Bishop Willehad , who was consecrated for missionary work in the regions along the Lower Weser, chose Bremen in 787 as the starting point for his activities. Two years later, on November 1st, 789, a church was consecrated there. The exact time of the foundation of the diocese cannot be reconstructed from the retrospective, so that only assumptions are made in research. Accordingly, the establishment of the diocese between the meeting of Pope Leo III. with Charlemagne in 799 and the episcopal ordination of Willehad's successor Willerich in 805.

Furthermore, it is considered likely that Willehad has already set up a monastery in Bremen ( monasterium Bremense ), although this is only documented under his third successor Ansgar . This bishop, who is close to the Benedictine order, had a lasting impact on the beginnings of the Bremen Cathedral Monastery. Up to the 11th century, a locally specific symbiosis of monastic and ecclesiastical aspects determined the life of the clerical community. For example, the habitus of the clergy was determined by religious rules while they were allowed to wear secular clothing.

The Diocese of Bremen was separated from the Church Province of Cologne in 864 and united with the Diocese of Hamburg to form the Archdiocese of Bremen-Hamburg. In the period that followed, Bremen and Hamburg each had their own cathedral monastery, a circumstance which, of course, led to conflicts within the archbishopric and it was not until 1224 that Pope Honorius III. has been resolved. Its compromise stipulated that Bremen should keep the “title and archbishopric dignity of the 'double diocese'”, while the cathedral monastery of Hamburg was allowed to nominate three members, namely provost, dean and scholaster, for the election of bishops.

Constitution and Decay

Only with the introduction of the Aachen canon rule by Archbishop Unwan (1013-1029) was the cathedral monastery itself institutionalized and deviated from the tradition of the Benedictine order. The death of Unwan represented a significant turning point in the history of the cathedral monastery, as as a result of it spiritual virtues were successively reduced to absurdity. Clergymen were said to have sexual closeness to women, the rations of the clerical community were steadily increased and aspects of the canonical rule of the vita communis ( common lifestyle ) were violated by the purchase of individual apartments (curiae). Until the middle of the 12th century, the cathedral monastery of Bremen sank almost to the point of insignificance.

Increased importance

The rehabilitation of the cathedral chapter was a lengthy process, with Hartwig I . (1148–1168) was initiated with the renewal of the monastery library. This was continued by Hartwig II (1185–1207), who assured the cathedral monastery of the inviolability of its worldly goods and rights and thus assigned the monastery a political role for the first time. The renewal of the cathedral monastery is particularly interwoven with Otto von St. Nikolai (1230). He carried out a whole series of reform measures that enabled and supported an increase in competence and power of the monastery, both immediately and in the long term. Measures in this catalog included, for example, the conversion to a capitulum clausum , the strict enforcement of the residence obligation, a renewal of discipline and order, the re-evaluation of obediental property and a structural link between the cathedral monastery and archdiaconates of the archdiocese and Bremen provosts. Furthermore, in the course of the 13th century, the Bremen Cathedral Monastery was granted the sole right to vote in the appointment of the archbishop, the administration of the diocese in the event of a vacancy and jurisdiction in the Archbishopric. The Bremer Domstift thus became a political power factor within the diocese. This is particularly clear from the examples of the Archbishops Johann Grand and Nikolaus von Oldenburg-Delmenhorst , who were deposed by the cathedral monastery in 1316 and 1434 due to suspected mental illness and lavish financial expenses.

Reformation and dissolution

First Protestant preacher at Bremen Cathedral: Albert Rizäus Hardenberg (Bremen Cathedral Museum)

The emerging Reformation in the city of Bremen in 1522 marked the beginning of the end for the cathedral monastery. First Catholic Masses were read in the dome continues, although a visit to the same from the Council had been banned the city 1528 threat of punishment. Already on Palm Sunday of the year 1532 the canons had to leave the city in the course of the " uprising of the 104 " and could not return to the Hanseatic city until 1533. It was only with the appointment of the Calvinist Albert Rizäus Hardenberg in 1547 that masses were read again in the cathedral. Overall, it can be said that the Protestant portion in the cathedral monastery grew steadily until its dissolution, so that it can increasingly be described as mixed denominationally. The last Catholic Archbishop Georg von Braunschweig , who died in 1566, was followed by four Protestant Archbishops. In the 16th and 17th centuries, the cathedral monastery suffered a further loss of morals, triggered by the pursuit of secular interests, so that the monastery was increasingly transformed into a “care institution for the nobility”. Archbishop Friedrich tried in 1638 to counteract the resulting decline by opening the cathedral to Lutheran services, which had been banned in 1561. The dissolution of the cathedral monastery was sealed ten years later by the Peace of Westphalia , when the archbishopric of Bremen became the property of the Swedish crown. On November 29, 1648 the cathedral monastery was forbidden to fill vacant canons and vicarages and on September 18, 1649 the monastery was officially abolished by the Swedish crown. The final decision to dissolve was made on November 28, 1654, when the city of Bremen withdrew its protection from the monastery.

Constitution

Dignities and offices

Provost

The dignity of provost is detectable for the first time in the year 918 and is the oldest known office within the cathedral chapter. In the 14th century the abundance of power of the provosts, in particular the competence of assigning the prebend from the general prebendal property , led to a crisis of confidence between the canons and the provost. The provosts were finally relieved of their duties of administration and jurisdiction within the monastery. From then on, these tasks were taken over by deans. Furthermore, the Dompropst was given an important archdiaconate , which consisted of the cities of Bremen and Stade as well as areas on both sides of the Lower Weser. In 1520 the provost had [for example] the right of collature over 78 churches and the right of institution over eleven chapels or vicarages .

dean

The dignity of the dean can be proven for the first time in 987. They too were curtailed in their powers. In 1410 the disciplinary power of the deans was reduced, so that from now on significant punishments and punishments required the approval of the collegiate community.

Scholaster

The first scholaster of the cathedral monastery in Bremen was probably Tiadhelm, who was appointed to the office in 960. In the 13th century, the office of scholastics became a sinecure , as the ministers began to hire scholars and schoolmasters from the lower clergy to take over active teaching. In Bremen, the Scholasticus was entitled to a minor archdeaconate in western East Frisia. Well-known Bremen scholasters were, for example: Adam von Bremen (1068–1080), Vizelin (1123–1126), Albert Sauerbeer (approx. 1229–1235), Florentius von Brunkhorst (1301–1307), Johann von Braunschweig-Lüneburg (1316 / 17), Johannes Slamstorp (1373/74) and Ortgies Schulte (1577–1612).

cantor

The office of cantor was re-established in Bremen in the course of the reconstitution of the cathedral monastery under Otto von St. Nikolai, after it had become meaningless in the course of the general decline of the monastery in the 13th century. The first cantor after the renewal was the singing master Otto (1232–1239).

Other offices

Vicars

Since the 12th century, and especially in the 14th and 15th centuries, vicars were installed in the Bremen cathedral monastery to represent canons in their daily duties. Towards the end of the Middle Ages 70 to 80 vicars were employed, and around 1300 they formed their own community for the purpose of managing their own capital. These were characterized by a high membership fee, which led to the establishment of a second vicarage around 1420/30.

Institutions

Cathedral school

The cathedral school is also reliably occupied for the first time in 960, when the first scholaster Tiadhelm taught grammar and dialectics in Bremen, and served in particular to educate new clerics for the diocese. From the 13th century on, teaching was increasingly taken over by rectors and schoolmasters, so that the office of scholaster became a sinecure. In the course of the rise of universities, the cathedral school experienced a loss of relevance in the late Middle Ages, which was expressed, for example, in the fact that only basic priestly education was taking place. In 1642 a Lutheran Latin school was set up at the cathedral, which was expanded in 1684 by an upper school called the Athenaeum . Here the students could study Latin, Greek and mathematics until it was finally closed in 1796. In the late Middle Ages, the student body at the cathedral school can be divided into two groups: the canonici infra scholas and the scholares chori . The first group was freed from communal life in the dormitory , so that there were in principle two schools that could be characterized as more religious or more secular according to their clientele. From the Reformation onwards, only Protestant students attended school.

Poor hospital

The poor hospital of the Bremen cathedral monastery was probably established by Archbishop Ansgar in 854 and was probably the first hospital east of the Rhine. Under his successors, the financial resources of the hospital were constantly expanded through, for example, the church tithing or donations, so that by the end of the 10th century around 24 needy people could be fed daily. The expansion of the feeding of the poor continued until Archbishop Adalbert (1043-1072) minimized the financial resources of the hospital. In the late Middle Ages, charitable gifts were distributed to the needy on just nine days a year.

Religious and Spiritual Life

Relics and pilgrimages

The cathedral monastery in Bremen had a large collection of relics, which has been steadily increased over the centuries. Most of the approx. 200 relics were kept in cathedral altars and were probably lost as a result of the Reformation. Around 860, Bremen became a local pilgrimage center thanks to Willehad's grave, as 39 miraculous healings are said to have taken place there. In the late Middle Ages, St.Peter's and Paul's Day (June 29) in particular were marked by pilgrims who came to Bremen for the great healing instruction .

The following relics can be found in Bremen up to the year 965:

In the late Middle Ages this inventory multiplied and included relics of:

  • Jesus Christ (particles from the sewn garment of Christ)
  • Peter (arm, tooth, sword and dungeon chain)
  • Maria
  • John the Baptist
  • Moses and Aron
  • Charlemagne
  • 85 martyrs
  • 49 confessors of faith
  • 27 holy virgins
  • 13 intact bodies of saints

Cathedral monastery and science

The Bremer Domstift has produced some important scholars and works. In particular, a rich historiographical tradition should be emphasized, which was heralded by the first (arch) bishops Willehad , Ansgar and Rimbert . In addition to the Vita Willehadi and the Miracula S. Willehadi , the Vita Anskarii is one of the most important examples of historiographical and hagiographical literature of the 9th century. Furthermore, the Hamburg-Bremen church history ( Gesta Hammaburgensis ecclesiae pontificum ) by Adam von Bremen is one of the most important and informative historical sources of the 11th century and is generally received as the most important scientific achievement of a personality belonging to the cathedral monastery. Other learned persons who are connoted with the pen are, for example, Gerd Rinesbech and Herbord Schene , who together wrote a chronicle of the city of Bremen (Rinesberch-Schene-Chronik), the canon lawyer and Professor Johann Rode, the professor Albert Koch, the alleged one Discoverer of the decades of Livy Martin Gröning and the theologian Heinrich Tocke .

capital

Bremen penny. Front with the head of Emperor Heinrich II (1014-1024). Rear S (ancta) BREMA A (grippinensis) to model Cologne

The Bremer Domstift had considerable assets, which were generated from a variety of sources of income. Archbishop Unwan (1013-1029) made it possible for the cathedral monastery to own property by granting the cathedral canons the right to manage their own assets and at the same time transferring property to them for the first time. This initially sparse property was replaced by Unwan's successors ( Libentius (1029-1032), Bezelin (1035-1043), Adalbert (1043-1072), Liemar (1072-1101), Adalbero (1123-1148), Siegfried (1180-1184) , Hartwig II. (1185–1207), Hildebold (1258–1273) and Giselbert (1274–1306)) continuously expanded through territorial transfers and tithe assignments. Inheritances and gifts from secular personalities ( Emperor Heinrich III. , Duke Heinrich the Lion , Count Widow Emma von Lesum ) and in particular memorial foundations and gifts from the civilian population continued to increase the ownership of the monastery, which reached its maximum extent around 1400. The areas of the monastery covered the entire diocese and, for example, already consisted of 109 areas in the early 13th century. This was mainly managed by self-employed farmers in accordance with the Villication Constitution and regularly generated income in the form of natural produce and money. Even the feudal system has been increasingly used since the 13th century, although it by unreliable tenant was not worth much.

Furthermore, the Bremen church already received the right to mint from King Arnulf of Carinthia in 888 , which was confirmed by Emperor Otto the Great in 965 and extended to include the king's ban. Between 1369 and the term of office of Heinrich von Schwarzburg (1463–1496) and from 1541 the right to mint was transferred from the church to the city of Bremen. Since 1194, the minting of the archbishopric was tied to the cathedral monastery, whose originally advisory function was expanded to a right of consensus until the beginning of the 15th century. In 1306 five coin rents (income from participation in coinage) can be proven, which in 1314 were combined into a single coin rent of 24 marks .

In addition, the cathedral factory (especially supported by John II ), the church interest and the royal interest are worth mentioning as sources of income. The cathedral vicars, who were subordinate to the canons, had the right to manage their own capital. About 1000 memorial foundations to the vicar community can be proven up to the 16th century .

See also

literature

  • Georg Dehio: History of the Archdiocese of Hamburg-Bremen up to the end of the mission. , Berlin 1877 (Osnabrück 1975).
  • The chronicles of the cities of Lower Saxony: Bremen. In: The Chronicles of the German Cities from the 14th to the 16th Century , ed. from the Historical Commission at the Bavarian Academy of Sciences, Volume 37, Bremen 1968.
  • Dieter Hägermann (Ed.): Bremen. 1200 years of mission. Bremen 1989.
  • Erkki Kuujo: The tithe system in the Archdiocese of Hamburg-Bremen until its privatization. Helsinki 1949.
  • Adalbert Müller: The Bremen Cathedral Chapter in the Middle Ages. Greifswald 1908.
  • Günther Möhlmann: The ownership of the Bremen cathedral chapter from its beginnings to the 14th century. Bremen 1933.
  • Ortwin Rudloff: 1200 years of St. Petri Cathedral in Bremen. Bremen 1989.
  • Walter Schönecke: Personnel and official data of the Archbishops of Hamburg-Bremen from the year 831 to 1511. Greifswald 1915.
  • Thomas Vogtherr: Archdiocese of Bremen (-Hamburg) . In: Erwin Gatz (Hrsg.): The dioceses of the Holy Roman Empire from their beginnings to sacularization. Freiburg im Breisgau 2003, pp. 113–127.
  • Ulrich Weidinger: Bremen - St. Petrus Cathedral Monastery (between 799 and 80 to 1649). In: Josef Dolle (ed.): Lower Saxony monastery book. Directory of the monasteries, monasteries, comedians and beguinages in Lower Saxony and Bremen from the beginning to 1810. Part 1: Abbingwehr to Gandersheim. Bielefeld 2012, pp. 193–222.
  • Ulrich Weidinger, Dieter Hägermann: Bremen church history in the Middle Ages. Bremen 2012.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Thomas Vogtherr: Archdiocese of Bremen (-Hamburg) . In: Erwin Gatz (ed.): The dioceses of the Holy Roman Empire from their beginnings to secularization . Freiburg im Breisgau 2003, p. 113 .
  2. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 194 + 195 .
  3. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 195 + 196 .
  4. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 196 + 197 .
  5. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 198 .
  6. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 197-199 .
  7. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 201 .
  8. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 200 + 201 .
  9. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 200 .
  10. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 201 .
  11. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 201 + 202 .
  12. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 202 .
  13. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 199 .
  14. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 206 .
  15. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 206 + 207 .
  16. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 202 .
  17. ^ Vogtherr: Archbishopric. Vogtherr explains here that Archbishop Adalbert passed the underage King Heinrich III. to the extent that it allowed the Archdiocese of Bremen-Hamburg to make generous donations and land transfers. S. 115 .
  18. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 205 .
  19. ^ Weidinger: Bremen . S. 203-206 .