Fulda Monastery

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Banner of the Holy Roman Emperor with haloes (1400-1806) .svg
Territory in the Holy Roman Empire
Fulda Monastery
coat of arms
Fulda-Abt 2.PNG
map
Atlas Ortelius KB PPN369376781-044av-044br.jpg
Location in the Reichskreis
HRR 1648 Fulda.png Location of the abbey of Fulda in the Holy Roman Empire (1648)
Alternative names Fulda Monastery, Imperial Abbey of Fulda, Prince Abbey of Fulda, Principality of Fulda
Arose from Duchy of Franconia
Ruler / government to prince abbot ; from 1752 Prince-Bishop
Today's region / s DE-HE / DE-BY / DE-TH
Parliament ecclesiastical bank in the Reichsfürstenrat
Reich register 152: 14 horsemen, 46 foot soldiers, 180 guilders
1532: 28 horsemen, 92 foot soldiers
1663: 17 horsemen, 50 foot soldiers or 404 guilders
Reichskreis Upper Rhine Empire Circle
Capitals / residences Fulda
Denomination / Religions Roman Catholic
Language / n German


Incorporated into Nassau-Orange-Fulda


The Fulda Monastery was a spiritual territory of the Holy Roman Empire . It belonged to the Upper Rhine Reichskreis and represented the territorial property of the Fulda monastery , from 1752 the diocese of Fulda . Accordingly, it was also called the prince- abbey of Fulda and the prince-bishopric of Fulda . Regional princes were the abbots and bishops of Fulda . It developed from the originally spiritual area of ​​the territorial abbey into a secular domain.

With the Reichsdeputationshauptschluss 1803, the ecclesiastical principality was dissolved and the Fulda possessions merged into the Principality of Nassau-Orange-Fulda .

history

Elevation to the prince abbey

From 1170 the Fulda abbots had the status of imperial princes . The rulership of the monastery in the 12th century consisted of a total of 450,000 acres between the North Sea and the Alps and was the largest contiguous territory of all abbeys in the empire. Due to the extensive free float, the Fulda abbots are said to have always stayed on their own land when traveling to Rome .

In 1220 the abbey was raised to the status of a prince abbey by Emperor Friedrich II on the occasion of the Confoederatio cum principibus ecclesiasticis . Prince Abbot Heinrich V. von Diez-Weilnau (1288–1313) had an abbey castle built between 1294 and 1312 in which he resided outside the monastery. This castle was converted into a Renaissance palace in the 17th century by Prince Abbot Johann Friedrich von Schwalbach .

As Abbot Heinrich VI. von Hohenberg (before 1320) built a second abbey castle within the city, the citizens, with the help of the high bailiff Count Johann I von Ziegenhain , stormed both of the abbot's castles and destroyed the new castle including the tower and curtain walls. On complaint of the abbot who had fled with Emperor Louis IV. , The city of Fulda and the Count were the emperor with the outlawed occupied. In 1331, Archbishop Baldwin of Trier brokered an atonement, as a result of which the citizens had to restore the tower and the curtain walls of the new castle and pay significant compensation. The leaders of the uprising were executed.

In 1356 Emperor Charles IV awarded the prince abbot the honorary title "Arch Chancellor of the Empress".

The Fuldaer Land with its monastery and city stood in the field of tension between the Archdiocese of Mainz, the Diocese of Würzburg and the Landgraviate of Hesse . In the course of the 15th century, the Fuldische Mark and the Gersfeld office were lost.

Under Abbot Reinhard von Weilnau (1449–1476) the development of the imperial monastery into a territorial principality came to an end. For the spatial administrative organization of the state see the list of the offices of the Hochstift Fulda .

Modern times

While the situation in the country remained calm during the reign of Abbot Johannes II von Henneberg (1477–1513), riots broke out under Hartmann II von Kirchberg (1513–1529), who was unpopular because of his extravagance. From 1523 there were first reformatory efforts in the Reichsstift. In the Central German peasant uprising at Easter 1525, peasants and the citizens of the city of Fulda allied themselves; the imperial monastery and its subsidiary monasteries were plundered. The Hessian Landgrave Philipp advanced on May 3, 1525 with a strong army, whereupon the peasants surrendered after a short resistance. The city was sacked and had to bear the cost of the war . As a result, the importance of the estates of the Fulda monastery increased significantly.

In 1570 Balthasar von Dernbach became prince abbot of Fulda. He wanted to renew the bishopric from the inside and in 1571 summoned the Jesuits to Fulda. A grammar school (1572) and a papal college (1584) were established. The prince abbot prevailed in the conflict with the largely evangelical nobility and from 1602 onwards he pushed through the Counter Reformation . About 250 people fell victim to the persecution of witches in the Fulda monastery.

Renaissance castle in Fulda, left the Heertor and right the Paulstor

Fulda was not spared from the devastation of the Thirty Years War (1618–1648). In 1622 troops of Duke Christian von Braunschweig plundered and sacked the bishopric. Further occupations, looting, billeting and pillaging followed. The monastery was looted by Hessian troops in 1631; numerous manuscripts from the library disappeared. From 1632 to 1634 Wilhelm V of Hessen-Kassel ruled the imperial monastery as Prince of Buchen . In the Peace of Prague in 1635, the imperial monastery was restituted. The numerous war damage was repaired under Prince Abbot Joachim von Gravenegg (1644–1671).

Fulda City Palace
Cathedral of St. Salvator in Fulda

In 1700, Prince Abbot Adalbert von Schleifras appointed Johann Dientzenhofer as master builder and commissioned him to build the baroque Fulda cathedral on the site of the Ratgar basilica and to expand the Fulda city palace in the baroque style.

Adolphs University of Fulda , 1840

The University of Fulda was founded in 1734 and existed until 1805. The institution founded by Prince Abbot Adolph von Dalberg on the basis of the papal college had four faculties : theology, philosophy, medicine and law. The baroque building from 1731 to 1734 was designed by Andreas Gallasini and today houses the Adolf von Dalberg primary school.

On October 5, 1752, the territorial abbey was raised to a diocese by Pope Benedict XIV , and the abbey of Fulda became the diocese of Fulda . From then on, the abbots resided as prince-bishops .

End of the ecclesiastical principality and "Fulda division"

With the Reichsdeputationshauptschluss 1803, the clerical principality was also dissolved after the Benedictine monastery had already been secularized the year before . The Fulda possessions went to Friedrich Wilhelm von Orange-Nassau as compensation for his lost governorship in the Netherlands . Together with the territory of the Corvey Abbey , they formed the Principality of Nassau-Orange-Fulda . The diocese of Fulda remained both canonical and factual and the last prince-bishop Adalbert von Harstall remained bishop of Fulda until his death in 1814 .

The rule of the House of Orange-Nassau was short-lived. As early as 1806 Napoleon I annexed the Principality of Nassau-Orange-Fulda. In 1810 it became part of the Grand Duchy of Frankfurt . At the Congress of Vienna in 1815, the province of Fulda was dissolved and after around one year of Prussian administration, the "Fulda division" was carried out: the territory of the former Fulda bishopric was divided up. This happened through the Vienna Congress Act (Art. 40) and a series of bilateral agreements concluded between the new sovereigns in 1815 and 1816, whereby the individual Fulda places formed the bargaining chip and some places were exchanged several times.

  1. Prussia received most of the former Fulda bishopric as the so-called Grand Duchy of Fulda and passed it on to the Electorate of Hesse .
  2. The Austrian Empire received the southern offices of Hammelburg , Brückenau and Weyhers and passed them on to the Kingdom of Bavaria .
  3. The Grand Duchy of Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach received the eastern offices of Geisa and Dermbach .
  4. Herbstein fell to the Grand Duchy of Hesse .

Grand Duchy of Fulda

In Kurhessen, the offices of the Principality of Nassau-Orange-Fulda were restored in the Grand Duchy of Fulda. In 1818 the Bieberstein office was split off from the Fulda regional office. There was thus a central administration in Fulda and the following offices:

In 1821 the administration of justice was separated from the administration in Kurhessen . The Grand Duchy of Fulda became the Province of Fulda . The administrative tasks of the offices were transferred to the districts, see the list of districts in the Electorate of Hesse (1821) . Justice offices took over the jurisdiction. The old offices were dissolved.

As a result of the failure of the federal execution due to the defeat of Austria and its allies in the German war against the Kingdom of Prussia, Kurhessen was annexed by it in 1866 and the province of Fulda thus part of the Prussian province of Hesse-Nassau .

literature

  • Winfried Romberg: The dioceses of the ecclesiastical province of Mainz. The Diocese of Würzburg, Volume 8. The Würzburg Bishops from 1684–1746. (= Germania sacra 3, 8). de Gruyter, Berlin / Boston 2014, ISBN 978-3-11-030537-1 .
  • Winfried Romberg: The dioceses of the ecclesiastical province of Mainz. The Diocese of Würzburg, Volume 7. The Würzburg bishops from 1617–1684 (= Germania sacra 3, 7). de Gruyter, Berlin / Boston 2011, ISBN 978-3-11-025183-8 .
  • Alfred Wendehorst : The Diocese of Würzburg, Volume 3. The series of bishops from 1455 to 1617 (= Germania sacra NF 13). Berlin / Boston 1978, ISBN 3-11-007475-3 .
  • Alfred Wendehorst: The diocese of Würzburg. Volume 2. The series of bishops from 1254 to 1455 (Germania sacra NF 4). Berlin / Boston 1978, ISBN 3-11-001291-X .
  • Alfred Wendehorst: The diocese of Würzburg. Volume 1. The series of bishops up to 1254 (= Germania sacra NF 1). Berlin / Boston 1962, ISBN 3-11-001283-9 .
  • Michael Kaufmann and others: The Benedictine monasteries for men and women in Bavaria (= Germania benedictina 2). Volume 1-3. Eos, St. Ottilien 2014, ISBN 978-3-8306-7657-7 .
  • Wolfgang Hamberger et al. (Hrsg.): History of the city of Fulda. From the beginning to the end of the Old Kingdom. Parzeller , Fulda 2009, ISBN 978-3-7900-0397-0 .
  • Werner Kathrein among others: Fulda, St. Salvator. In: Friedhelm Jürgensmeier et al. (Hrsg.): The Benedictine monastery and nunnery in Hessen (= Germania Benedictina 7 Hessen). Eos, St. Ottilien 2004, ISBN 3-8306-7199-7 , pp. 213-434.
  • Friedhelm Jürgensmeier : Handbook of the Mainz Church History. Volume 1-3. Echter, Würzburg 1997-2002.
  • Berthold Jäger : Fulda in the Old Kingdom. (= Publications of the Fulda History Association 59). Parzeller, Fulda 1996, ISBN 3-7900-0275-5 .
  • Walter Heinemeyer , Berthold Jäger (Ed.): Fulda in his story. Landscape Imperial Abbey City. (= Publications of the Historical Commission for Hesse 57). Elwert, Marburg 1995, ISBN 3-7900-0252-6 .
  • Werner Kathrein, Andreas Greif (Hrsg.): Heritage and mission. 1250 years monastery - Hochstift - Diocese of Fulda. Review of the anniversary year . Parzeller, Fulda 1995, ISBN 3-7900-0262-3 .
  • Berthold Jäger: The ecclesiastical principality of Fulda in the early modern period: sovereignty, estates, etc. princely administration. (= Writings of the Hessian State Office for Historical Regional Studies 39). Elwert, Marburg 1986.
  • Ulrich Hussong: Studies on the history of the imperial abbey of Fulda up to the turn of the millennium. Part I-II. In: Archives for Diplomatics. 31, 1985, pp. 1-225; Archives for diplomacy. 32, 1986, pp. 129-304.
  • Josef Leinweber: The Fulda Monastery before the Reformation. Parzeller, Fulda 1972, ISBN 3-7900-0012-4 .
  • Franz Staab : Fulda (B). In: Caspar Ehlers et al. (Ed.): Die Deutschen Königspfalzen. Volume 1: Hesse. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 2001, ISBN 3-525-36517-9 .
  • Hermann Jakobs (Ed.): Germania pontificia sive repertorium privilegiorum et litterarum a Romanis pontificibus ante annum MCLXXXXVIII Germaniae ecclesiis monasteriis civitatibus singulisque personis concessorum Provincia Maguntinensis. Volume 4, S. Bonifatius, Archidioecesis Maguntinensis, Abbatia Fuldensis, Vandenhoeck and Rupprecht, Göttingen 1978, ISBN 3-525-36029-0 .
  • Josef Leinweber : The Fulda Monastery before the Reformation. Parzeller, Fulda 1972, ISBN 3-7900-0012-4 .
  • Stephan Hilpisch : The Fulda provosts. In: Fulda history sheets. 43, 1967, pp. 109-117.
  • Edmund E. Stengel : Treatises and studies on the history of the Reichsabtei Fulda. (= Publications of the Fulda History Association 37). Parzeller, Fulda 1960.
  • Annelise Hofemann: Studies on the development of the territory of the imperial abbey of Fulda and its offices. (= Writings of the Hessian Office for Historical Regional Studies 25). Volume 1-2 (Atlas). Elwert, Marburg 1958.
  • Hubert Hack: The legal dispute between the prince-bishop of Würzburg and the prince-abbot of Fulda at the Roman Curia about spiritual sovereignty in the area of ​​the Fulda monastery from 1688-1717. (= Sources and treatises on the history of the abbey and diocese of Fulda 18). Parzeller, Fulda 1956.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b History of the Principality of Fulda. December 31, 2010, accessed July 3, 2015 .
  2. ^ Berthold Jäger: On the history of the witch trials in Fulda Abbey. State of research - criticism - perspectives , in: Fuldaer Geschichtsblätter 73 (1997), pp. 7–64.
  3. ↑ Georg-Wilhelm Hanna: Borders and boundary stones in the Rhön and Spessart are reminiscent of the territorial history of our political homeland after 1816, 1866 and 1945-1990 . In: Bergwinkel-Bote , vol. 67 (2016), pp. 55–70.
  4. ↑ Otto Berge: The division of Fulda after the Congress of Vienna . In: Stefan Waldmann (Red.): History and tasks of the district of Fulda. Monograph on the 175th anniversary of the district . Parzeller, Fulda (1996), ISBN 3-7900-0271-2 , pp. 59-70.

Coordinates: 50 ° 33 ′ 14.5 "  N , 9 ° 40 ′ 18.3"  E