Bergen Monastery (Neuburg)
The Bergen Monastery is a former Benedictine monastery in Bergen near Neuburg an der Donau in Bavaria in the Eichstätt diocese .
history
The monastery was founded in 976 by Wiltrud von Bergen , the widow of Duke Berthold of Bavaria . After Wiltrudis founded a Benedictine convent in 976 , Pope John XV confirmed the founding on September 27, 988 . In 1007 the monastery was given to the diocese of Bamberg by King Heinrich II .
The property was confiscated in 1542 by Ottheinrich von Pfalz-Neuburg in the course of the Reformation . After the re-Catholicization of the area, Wolfgang Wilhelm von Pfalz-Neuburg handed the monastery over to the Jesuits of Neuburg in 1635 . They partially demolished the monastery buildings and used the material for the Jesuit seminar in Neuburg an der Donau .
In place of the Romanesque hall church from the 11th century, the church was rebuilt in 1755 in the Rococo style according to plans by the Eichstatt master builder Giovanni Domenico Barbieri (1704–1764) . The ceiling painting of the Holy Cross Church is the most important work of the Augsburg painter Johann Wolfgang Baumgartner (1712–1761).
Remnants of the original church were preserved in the crypt , as was the tower, which was rebuilt in 1799. In addition to the former monastery church and the tower, the old chaplaincy from 1431 and the one kilometer long natural stone monastery wall from the 14th century are still preserved today.
Munster and pilgrimage church of the Holy Cross
The church was mentioned for the first time in 787. In 1095 a new church was consecrated by Bishop Ulrich I of Eichstätt . After a fire destroyed large parts of the church in 1155, it was consecrated in 1190 by Bishop Otto von Eichstätt after restoration. In 1494 the parish of Bergen was incorporated into the monastery . After an initial suspension in 1542, the monastery was finally abolished in 1552 by Ottheinrich , Count Palatine von Neuburg. After Bergen was re-Catholicized in 1618, the church and parts of the monastery were handed over to the Jesuits of Neuburg in 1635 . In 1700 the church and the crypt were renovated and extended by 7 altars. At the same time, the pilgrimage to the Holy Cross achieved an unexpected increase. A thorough renovation in the Rococo style was carried out according to plans by the Eichstatt master builder Giovanni Domenico Barbieri in the years 1755 to 1758. The Augsburg painter Johann Wolfgang Baumgartner created the ceiling frescoes on this move. The church was consecrated in 1758 by Prince-Bishop Raimund Anton von Eichstätt . In 1799 the tower was rebuilt.
Around 1920 and then again from 2001 to 2003 the church was renovated. On September 14, 2003, it was ceremoniously reopened by Bishop Walter Mixa . In 1976 the parish celebrated “1000 years of the Holy Cross of Bergen”. In 2020 the diocese of Eichstätt revived the church's original name as Münster .
Romanesque crypt
Two stairs lead from the inside of the church to the lower church, which in itself is a gem. The Romanesque crypt is a three-aisled hall with a groin vault . In 1927, the craftsmen grouted the Romanesque masonry entirely with cement mortar. This was a mistake and the wall suffered damage as a result. During the renovation work in 2001/2003, only lime mortar was allowed to be used. The renovation gave the lower church the character of a grace chapel. The altar rooms have been redesigned. A folk altar created by the Eichstatt artist Rudolf Ackermann was added. It is a simple, large cube made of walnut wood. The cross relic can be seen in a stele .
The draw well
In the northern side room of the crypt, the valuable piece is a draw well from the Romanesque period. When Ottheinrich introduced the Reformation in 1542 and abolished the monastery, the nuns are said to have sealed the cross particle in an oak block of wood and sunk it in the weir well, which is 9 meters deep. The Neuburg Jesuits brought the cross particle back to the daylight in 1618 and kept it in a safe. The handcrafted safe was built deep into the church wall.
The block of wood, but also the draw well, played a special role in pilgrimage customs. In 1846 a piece of the block of wood was left. The pilgrims have now cut off most of the wood because it is said to have helped against toothache. Eye sufferers took the well water and used it to wash their eyes.
monstrance
Elector Karl Philipp von der Pfalz-Neuburg also valued the Baringer Church. In 1718 he donated a golden monstrance set with 772 diamonds to keep the cross particle next to the suffering particles . The elector carried the present to Bergen on foot. He also presented the church with a silver tabernacle , two silver angels, six candlesticks, a canopy , and a silver heart and a wedding dress made of gold. The precious monstrance fell victim to secularization , it was sold in 1806 and brought in proceeds of three thousand guilders. But the actual value is put at twenty thousand guilders.
The ox miracle
As early as 1561, the “ox miracle” was mentioned in a description of the history of the monastery in Bergen. Two oxen are said to have transported the stones from the quarry to the building site of the basilica without a driver. When the stones were unloaded, the four-legged friends trotted back to the quarry and again had their vehicle loaded with stones. This is said to have been repeated until all the necessary stones were in place.
The pilgrimage
Around 1700 the pilgrimage achieved an unexpected boom. The children with their sufferings were the engine of pilgrimage. A woman from Egweil brought her two sick children and asked for the cross particle to be placed. One child died afterwards, the other recovered. And this news did not remain hidden, but made the rounds. Many childhood illnesses were the order of the day. So the relatives dragged their sick offspring to Bergen and hoped for a cure. The chronicler soon recorded in the book of miracles over two hundred children who were brought with various diseases. The news of the miraculous cross in Bergen spread very quickly. In 1709, Bergen experienced an unprecedented surge of pilgrims, but also various healings. A Ziegler from Rain is brought in a car to Bergen, he was suffering from apoplexy . In the presence of many pilgrims he left the church without human help. Those seeking help came from Augsburg, Scheyern, Landshut, Bettbrunn near Ingolstadt and Fünfstetten near Wemding. Processions from Ingolstadt, Eichstätt and Neuburg made pilgrimages to Bergen in 1710. Even Alexander Sigismund von der Pfalz , a son of Prince Philipp Wilhelm Neuburger, a pilgrimage this year to Bergen. In 1726 there were already 834 miracles recorded.
Around 1726 the pilgrimage no longer had a good reputation and decreased again. The innkeeper Ferdinand Anton Waibel was blamed. He was charged with various robberies and burglaries in 1719 and was hanged for it. But he is also said to have murdered some pilgrims who stayed with him and served his guests with human flesh to eat. In 1730 there were so few pilgrimage visits that the sacrificial monies incurred were no longer even enough to support the church.
Tower of the Holy Cross Church
The Romanesque apses of the monastery church
Indoor shot
Indoor shot
The crypt with the Holy Cross reliquary
The Holy Cross reliquary in the crypt
Chaplaincy
See also
literature
- Church guide Parish and pilgrimage church of the Holy Cross in Bergen. 3. Edition. Schnell & Steiner publishing house, Regensburg 1999.
- Pastor Bigler (ed.) 1000th anniversary celebration for the foundation of the Benedictine convent of the Holy Cross in Bergen. Festschrift. 1976.
- Bruno Bushart , Friedrich Kaess: Bergen monastery near Neuburg on the Danube and its frescoes by Johann Wolfgang Baumgartner. Anton H. Konrad Verlag, Weißenhorn 1981, ISBN 3-87437-183-2 .
Web links
- Bergen Monastery (Neuburg) , basic data in the database of monasteries in Bavaria in the House of Bavarian History
- Holy Cross Church in Mountains
- Photos of the furnishings in the monastery church in Bergen, in the Warburg Institute Iconographic Database .
supporting documents
- ^ The parish of Bergen in the diocese of Eichstätt
- ↑ The pilgrimage church Heilig Kreuz in Bergen is Münster - Bishop Hanke revives the expired title. In: Diocese of Eichstätt. February 12, 2020, accessed February 17, 2020 .
Coordinates: 48 ° 47 ′ 3.1 ″ N , 11 ° 8 ′ 31.5 ″ E