Wimmelburg Monastery
The monastery Wimmelburg is a former Benedictine - Abbey in Wimmelburg , west of Eisleben in the Mansfeld-Südharz in Saxony-Anhalt . The monastery buildings still preserved and under monument protection (church, manor house and the chapter house ) are located south of the B 80 at the exit of Wimmelburg towards Eisleben.
founding
On the Friedrichsberg, a hill northeast above today's sports field, the Wigmodeburg castle, first documented in 1038 and from which the name of the village is derived, has been located at least since the beginning of the 11th century. In the years between 1060 and 1070 the castle, which obviously no longer had any strategic importance, was abandoned. Countess Christina von Mansfeld, daughter of Count Siegfried II of Weimar-Orlamünde and wife of Count Hoyer in Hassegau , the progenitor of the Counts of Mansfeld , founded a monastery dedicated to Saint Cyriacus on the Friedrichsberg during this time . The building material from the old castle was probably used to build the monastery, as very little of the old castle was found on Friedrichsberg later.
laying
However, the location on the mountain turned out to be unfavorable, as the ascent was steep and difficult, the weather inhospitable and the monastery there was the target of frequent predatory attacks. Therefore, in 1121, at the request of Abbot Milo and with the consent of the Bishop of Halberstadt , Reinhard von Blankenburg , the monastery was moved to the valley below the Friedrichsberg. A large cruciform basilica was built there between around 1130 and 1150 .
Heyday
In 1162 Pope Alexander III. the abbots of Wimmelburg permission to wear the miter . In the same year the abbey also received the right to mint . In the course of time, the monastery received church patronage over the churches of St. Vincentii in Wimmelburg, St. Cyriacii in Wolferode , St. Petri in Eisleben and the churches of the now desolate places Erwinsrode, Klein Eisleben , Globigkau and Hohenwarthe. Monastery governors had been the Counts of Mansfeld at least since the beginning of the 14th century. Reformed in 1491 by the Berge Abbey , the monastery joined the Bursfeld Congregation , which sought to bring the rule of the Order of St. Benedict back into consideration in its original rigor and purity.
The reputation and charisma of Wimmelburg Abbey in the 12th to 16th centuries went far beyond that of other monasteries in the area. Since Saint Cyriacus , the patron saint against evil spirits, was said to have the ability to heal those possessed by the devil, the monastery became a much-visited place of pilgrimage in the late Middle Ages . Epileptics in particular hoped for a cure if they followed the call of the "Cyriacus bell". The silver bell had a miraculous reputation and was shamelessly exploited by the monks, especially when the monastery customs were neglected, by collecting donations from the pilgrims who camped day after day on the surrounding mountain slopes and hoped the sound of the bell would cure their illnesses . Martin Luther sharply criticized this bad habit in his sermons and table speeches.
It is also interesting that in the 15th century in Wimmelburg Monastery, as in Merseburg before , people switched from Low German to High German , as well as in Eisleben, in Gerbstedt Monastery , in Halle and with the Mansfeld counts.
secularization
During the German Peasants' War , the monastery was opened on April 2nd and 4th. Looted but not destroyed by rebellious peasants in May 1525. All documents, letters and books were destroyed. In the next year, 1526, the monastery was secularized by the Counts of Mansfeld-Mittelort and -Hinterort, who had introduced the Reformation in their counties , and converted into a count's office and an economic yard. The monastery church became a Protestant church. The office and the commercial yard were pledged or leased to wealthy bidders by the counts, who were permanently in debt.
Destruction and subsequent use
On January 10, 1680, a major fire that was visible as far as Eisleben destroyed large parts of the former monastery complex and a large part of the church. The Cyriacus bell was also lost. Most of the burned-out church ruins were torn down. Only small parts were rebuilt in 1686, but not very properly. The current parish church of St. Cyriacus is therefore only a sparse remnant of the former Romanesque basilica. Only the main choir with the associated apse , the northern side choir with the apse, the crossing and the lower part of the northern transept are preserved , but only as a ruin. The church, which can be entered today through a round-arched portal on the north side, which is entwined with columns, received a baroque pulpit altar and a baptismal font that is carried on the shoulder by a kneeling angel. The organ from 1908 is from the Zörbiger organ builder Wilhelm Rühlmann .
From the ruins of the secularized monastery building, the then owner of the office, HO Ch. Von Pfuel , had the large manor house built directly next to the church and still dominating the complex at the beginning of the 18th century; the Pfuels family coat of arms can be seen above the gate entrance. He also had the remains of the park laid out today. The monastery was owned by the Pfuel family from 1664 to 1798, until they sold the Oberamt Eisleben with Wimmelburg to the state of Electoral Saxony.
The later domain was owned by Prince Ferdinand of Prussia for a long time . In the times of the GDR , the former domain was finally used by an agricultural production cooperative (LPG), which was not always beneficial to the condition of the buildings.
Coordinates: 51 ° 31 '11 " N , 11 ° 30' 51" E
Individual evidence
- ↑ Gerhard Cordes & Dieter Möhn (eds.): Handbook on Low German Language and Literature Science , Erich Schmidt Verlag, Berlin, 1983, ISBN 3-503-01645-7 , p. 113 ( preview in Google book search)
- ↑ Visiting the church is only possible by registering with the parish office of St. Barbara in Helbra .
- ^ Birk Karsten corner: Wimmelburg - The former monastery of St. Cyriacus of the Counts of Mansfeld . December 3, 2012. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
- ^ Diplomatic news from noble families, as those ... concerning: v. Pfuel. etc. . Intelligence comtoir; Hahmannsche Buchhandlung; Beygangische Buchhandlung, 1791, p. 82.
- ^ Harzverein für Geschichte und Altertumskunde eV: Harz-Zeitschrift 2013: 65th year . Lukas Verlag, October 30, 2013, ISBN 978-3-86732-154-9 , p. 194.
literature
- Hermann Großler , Adolf Brinkmann, Gustav Sommer: The art monuments of the Mansfeld lake district. Reprint of the publications 1879–1943, flieskopf Verlag, Halle / Saale 2000, ISBN 3-910147-87-9 .
- Monika Lücke : Benedictine monasteries in Mansfeld during the Reformation. In: Christof Römer, Dieter Pötschke, Oliver H. Schmidt (eds.): Benedictines, Cistercians. Lukas Verlag, Berlin 1999.
