Marmoutier Monastery (Alsace)
The Monastery Marmoutier (lat. Mauri Monasterium ; German Maursmünster ) is a former Benedictine monastery in Marmoutier in the department of Bas-Rhin in the French region of Grand Est .
history
The monastery was founded around 590, according to other sources in 659, by St. Leobard (Liebhard) († around 680 in Maursmünster), a student of St. Columban , and named after the Upper Italian city of Aquileia . Maursmünster is counted among the Merovingian monasteries and was an imperial monastery . In 728, as abbot, Saint Pirmin reformed several Alsatian monasteries with Colombian characteristics in accordance with the Benedictine Rule , including Maursmünster. Maurus became abbot, after whom the monastery was soon named. Maurus is therefore often considered the actual founder of this monastery.
Together with the Neuweiler Abbey , Maursmünster formed a peninsula belonging to Metz in the middle of the Strasbourg diocese, which was formed in the 8th century.
Around 814, Emperor Ludwig the Pious turned the pirate abbey into a Benedictine model abbey in Alsace , where he appointed Benedict von Aniane († 821) abbot.
A land register (property register) of the Maursmünster monastery is dated to the year 828 .
On March 1, 1096, Pope Urban II inaugurated the new monastery church.
In the 12th century, Groß-Geroldseck Castle was also built to protect the abbey.
The forest regulations of the monastery from 1144 with the instruction not to cut more wood than grows back, is generally regarded as the first formulation of a sustainability approach.
The monastery was plundered by the Protestants during the German Peasants' War (1525) and partially destroyed, Anton von Lorraine and his troops were able to prevent arson at the last moment.
The monastery was also affected by the Thirty Years War , but the abbey church remained without major damage.
Abbey church
The foundations of the pre-Carolingian church building have been exposed in the basement of the church.
The west facade (around 1140/50), the vestibule and the towers from the 11th and 12th centuries still exist today from the Staufer architecture of the collegiate church. The facade is crowned by three gables and is flanked by two octagonal towers. A square, 36 m high main tower rises in between. Although the building is only 20 m wide, it makes a mighty impression. The front with its rich figure decorations, but also the column and arch decorations in the vestibule bear witness to the Romanesque sculpture. This is why this Romanesque abbey church is one of the most beautiful in Alsace. The nave of the church behind the westwork was rebuilt in Gothic style between 1225 and 1301. From 1761–1769 the monks' choir was rebuilt in the Gothic style and equipped with remarkable choir stalls. The planned replacement of the Romanesque westwork by a new baroque building in 1788 prevented the outbreak of the French Revolution and the abolition of the monastery.
The overall length of the church is 74 m, which makes it longer than Basel Minster .
organ
The organ from the workshop of the Strasbourg organ builder Andreas Silbermann is particularly remarkable. The instrument was built in the years 1707-1710. Over time, the instrument was supplemented and repaired several times. In 1955 the instrument was extensively restored by the organ builders Alfred Kern and Ernst Mühleisen .
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literature
- Romanesque Alsace . Introduction by Hans Haug, texts by Robert Will. German Zodiaque 1966 edition. Pp. 143-211.
- Walter Goldinger : The constitution of the Maursmünster monastery in Alsace, in: ZGO 90 (1938).
- E. Herr: The donation from Mark Maursmünster. In: ZGO 60 (1906), p. 527 ff.
- August Hertzog: Legal and economic constitution of the Maursmünster abbey area during the Middle Ages, X. Heitz, Munich 1888 (contributions to the regional and folklore of Alsace-Lorraine 9).
- Paul Smets : Organ Monographs 10 - The organ works of the abbeys of Maursmünster and Ebersmünster . Rheingold-Verlag, Mainz 1956.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Floor plan with scale on the website of the Center de documentation pédagogique (CRDP) de Strasbourg
- ↑ More information about the organ
Web links
- Information with lots of photos
- Picture and description of the Romanesque facade and vestibule
- Marmoutier on Kathedralen.net
- History and description of the organ
Coordinates: 48 ° 41 ′ 26 " N , 7 ° 22 ′ 56" E