Richelsley
The Richelsley , also spelled Richel Ley , is an 80 meter long and up to 12 meter high Devonian conglomerate rock , the rock of which was originally deposited as gravel-like sediment over 400 million years ago at the bottom of a sea not far from the then coast. The rock is said to have received its name in the 12th century from Richwin, the founder of Richwinstein Castle, today's Reichenstein Monastery . It is wrongly referred to as a megalith in various scriptures . However, it is a natural rock formation that has remained in its current form and extent after the weathering and erosion of the surrounding rock. It is located in Belgium , in the Wallonia region , in the province of Liège , in the area of the facilities municipality Waimes on the edge of the High Fens near the German border near Reichenstein / Monschau monastery.
The Richelsley is known among other things for a 6 meter high and approx. 1.4 tons heavy, powerful cross that is firmly anchored in the rock on the crest of the rock. 31 steps lead up to the cross, in which cross-shaped ornaments have been cut.
The novel Das Kreuz im Fenn by Clara Viebig , published around 1908, made Richelsley, who is in the middle of the forest, and the cross known beyond the Eifel.
history
Ordered the construction of the Cross in 1890, the pastor Gerhard Joseph Arnoldy, the 1869-1914 active in Kalterherberg and builder of the local Eifel cathedral was. He had it built for 800 gold marks at his own expense in memory of the monk Stephan Horrichem . Horrichem, also known as the "Apostle of the Fens", was prior of the nearby Premonstratensian monastery Reichenstein from 1639 to 1686 and worked tirelessly for the oppressed people on the Fens during the Thirty Years' War .
The Richelsley, with the statue of the Virgin Mary in a niche in the massive rock, is a popular place of prayer. The burning candles and the fresh flowers testify to the many pilgrims who go up to Richelsley today and find peace, consolation and new courage in the silence. For decades, pilgrims from the surrounding communities have been going in processions to the Marian Grotto on May 1st to celebrate the May service together.
Individual evidence
Web links
Coordinates: 50 ° 32 '9.4 " N , 6 ° 11' 28.4" E