In Germany there are today more than two thousand active Catholic monasteries and about two hundred evangelical monasteries – monasteries or branches of various Christian orders and communities: in particular the Benedictines, Franciscans, Cistercians, Johannites. There are also many old monasteries used as museums, hotels, cultural centers, schools, boarding schools and so on. We present the twenty oldest, most famous and most picturesque – in no particular order.

Eberbach

Eberbach Monastery (Kloster Eberbach) is a former Cistercian abbey in Hesse. It was founded in 1136 and dissolved during secularization under Napoleon. Here are well-preserved monuments of early Romanesque and Gothic architecture. Now owned by a foundation whose mission is to preserve the region’s winemaking traditions. In this monastery, in 1986, the film “The Name of the Rose” was filmed, based on the homonymous novel by Umberto Eco, in which the main role was played by Sean Connery.

andex

The monastery church of the Abbey of Andechs was built in the 1420s and rebuilt in the mid-18th century in the Rococo style.

Andechs Abbey (Kloster Andechs) is an active monastery located near Munich. The abbey was founded on the shores of Lake Ammersee in the mid-15th century. The largest monastery brewery in Germany operates in the monastery.

Blaubeuren

Part of the main altar in the monastery church of the former abbey of Blaubeuren

Blaubeuren Abbey (Kloster Blaubeuren) is a former Benedictine monastery in Baden-Württemberg. It was founded around 1085. After the Reformation it became a Protestant seminary. There is now a gymnasium and various museum exhibits. The monastery church and the bypass gallery are also open to visitors.

Benediktbeuern

The bell towers of the monastery of Benediktbeuern against the backdrop of the snow-covered alpine foothills

The Benediktbeuern Monastery (Kloster Benediktbeuern) is a former Benedictine monastery in Bavaria. Directed by the Order of Salesians of Don Bosco. The monastery was founded around 740 and dissolved in 1803. Then, at different times, the glass factory of the famous optician Josef Fraunhofer, a stable, a barracks and a house for the disabled were located here. There are now educational centers, a museum and a youth camp.

Scene from the German film about the life of Hildegard de Bingen “Vision – Aus dem Leben der Hildegard von Bingen”

Hildegard Abbey of Bingen

Hildegard Abbey of Bingen (Abtei St. Hildegard) on the Middle Rhine is now home to over fifty nuns. The history of this monastery near Rüdesheim goes back about nine centuries, although the current buildings and the temple are not that old – they were built at the beginning of the last century. The monastery is one of the Middle Rhine World Heritage Sites. Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179) had a major influence on Christianity in medieval Europe with her work in various fields of science, theology and poetry. Treatises on herbal treatment and the causes of human diseases in many respects have not lost their relevance, they are still being published and studied.

Bamberg

“Garden of Eden” in the vaults of the monastery church in Bamberg

Continuing the herb theme, let’s take a look at Bamberg. The former local monastery of St. Michael (Kloster Michaelsberg) was founded in 1015. The so-called church herbarium (Herbarium) is especially famous. The frescoes inside the temple depict around 600 different types of flowers, berries, herbs, shrubs and other plants. The painting of this “Garden of Eden” was completed in 1617.

Boyron

Beuron Abbey in the Danube Valley

Beuron Abbey (Erzabtei Beuron) is a functioning Benedictine monastery established on the Upper Danube in 1863. Here there was an Augustinian monastery, founded in 861 and dissolved during Napoleonic secularization, like some other cloisters in Germany that we have already mentioned. Here, in particular, is the largest monastery library in the country.

Maria Laah

The monastery church of Laach Abbey

The Abbey of Santa Maria de Laach (Abtei Maria Laach) was founded by the Benedictines on the shores of a volcanic lake in the Eifel region (Rhineland-Palatinate) over 920 years ago. It is one of the most famous active monasteries in Germany. Around 700,000 visitors come here every year. The local store that sells plants and seedlings, for example, is particularly successful.

Ettal

Baroque frescoes in Ettal Abbey

Ettal Abbey (Kloster Ettal) is a functioning Benedictine monastery in Bavaria, located near Linderhof Castle. Note that these places themselves, namely the Alpine community of Ettal, are associated with the work and personal life of Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev. Here he worked on the opera “Fiery Angel” and in 1923 he married the Spanish singer Carolina Codina.

corvey

Western facade of Corvey Abbey Temple – a Carolingian era monument

Corvey Abbey (Kloster Corvey) is a former Benedictine monastery founded by the will of Charlemagne on the banks of the River Weser in Westphalia. The monastery became an outpost for the Christianization of the Saxon lands conquered by this emperor, and it also played an important role during the reign of the Carolingians. It has UNESCO World Heritage status as well as the following three attractions…

lorsch

Lorsch Monastery Gate

Lorsch Monastery (Kloster Lorsch) is a former imperial abbey. It was founded near Worms in the 8th century and soon became a very influential and privileged monastery. The entrance gate has survived to this day – one of the few monuments of the pre-Romanesque style in Germany. In 1991, Lorsch Monastery and the local archaeological sites were included in the World Heritage List.

Maulbronn

Maulbronn Monastery in Baden-Württemberg

Maulbronn Monastery (Kloster Maulbronn) was founded in 1147 and is the best preserved medieval monastery north of the Alps. Located in Baden-Württemberg. Among the pupils of the local monastery school are the names of Johannes Kepler and Hermann Hesse. In 1993, the monastery also became a World Heritage Site.

Reichenau

Reichenau monastic island in Lake Constance

This photo shows not a monastery, but the entire (old) island of the monastery of Reichenau (Klosterinsel Reichenau). In the 8th century, a Benedictine monastery was founded on this largest island in Lake Constance. During the Middle Ages, it was one of the important religious centers in Germany. The UNESCO list includes three preserved Romanesque churches on the island. The oldest and largest of these is the former monastery church dedicated to the Virgin Mary and the Apostle Mark in Mittelzel.

Lenin

Former grain warehouse on the territory of the Lenin Monastery

The Lenin Monastery (Kloster Lehnin) is a former Cistercian monastery in Brandenburg. It was founded in 1180 and dissolved during the Reformation in the mid-16th century. Monuments of brick architecture from the Romanesque and Gothic periods have been preserved in the territory. Today, several medical and educational institutions are located here, managed by the state Evangelical Church.

gelft

Blooming lavender in the garden of Gelft monastery

The Monastery of Helfta (Kloster Helfta, also known as Helfta) is a functional convent of the Cistercian Order, founded in the early 13th century near Eisleben (Saxony-Anhalt). Included in the Estrada de Romanica tourist route. This community in particular belonged to Mechtilde of Magdeburg, a mystical writer whose work influenced Dante, who mentions her in the Divine Comedy.

Neuzelle

Catholic and Evangelical churches on the territory of the monastery in Neuzell

Neuzelle Monastery (Kloster Neuzelle) – the current monastery of the Cistercian order, founded in Brandenburg in the 13th century. The monastic community was revived here in 2018. It acquired its current form in the Baroque era. The temple houses the famous Passion of Christ sculptures, created for the abbey in the mid-18th century.

Weltenburg

Picturesque Danube landscape in Weltenburg Abbey area

The Benedictine Abbey of Weltenburg (Kloster Weltenburg) is the oldest monastery in Bavaria. It was founded in 617 by Irish or Scottish monks who arrived in these places from France. The local brewery, founded in 1050, is considered one of the oldest operating breweries in the world.

Stained glass windows by Gerhard Richter in the Abbey of Saint Mauritius

Abbey of Saint Mauritius

The Benedictine Abbey of Saint Mauritius in Saar Tolai (Benediktinerabtei Saint Mauritius, Abtei Tholey) is the oldest active monastery in Germany. The first written mention of this monastery dates from 634. In 2020, three stained glass windows made according to sketches by Gerhard Richter, the most famous and successful modern German artist, were installed in the local church.

zalem abbey

Former abbey, now castle and boarding school in Salem

In this former monastery – Salem Abbey (Reichsabtei Salem), which later became the residence of the Margraves of Baden – Salem Castle (Schloss Salem), is one of the most famous private boarding schools in Germany. The Cistercian monastery was founded a few kilometers from Lake Constance, presumably in 1137 or 1138. In the late Middle Ages, this abbey became one of the largest and wealthiest in the region.