Amelungsborn Abbey
Encyclopedia
Amelungsborn Abbey, also Amelunxborn Abbey (Kloster Amelungsborn) near Negenborn
and Stadtoldendorf
, in the Landkreis of Holzminden
in the Weserbergland
, was the second oldest Cistercian foundation in Lower Saxony
, Germany
, after Walkenried Abbey
. It survived the Reformation
by becoming Lutheran, and with Loccum Abbey
, also previously Cistercian, is one of the only two Lutheran monasteries in Germany with an uninterrupted tradition.
The abbey church, St. Mary's, is also the parish church of the abbey's former estate villages Negenborn and Holenberg
.
.
Siegfried IV, the last Count of Northeim-Boyneburg and Homburg gave the land at Amelungsborn for the foundation of a Cistercian monastery, which was officially settled by a community of monks from Altenkamp Abbey on 20 November 1135.
With the establishment of this monastery and of the nearby Burg Homburg, built at around the same time, it seems that Count Siegfried was aiming to secure a part of his possessions that lay distant from his ancestral seat in North Hessen.
No foundation charter has survived, although there is a confirmation dated 5 December 1129 by Pope Honorius II
. Nevertheless an interval of six years between foundation and settlement fits the general timescale of Cistercian foundations.
The abbey was dedicated in 1135 by Bernhard I, Bishop of Hildesheim. The first abbot of Amelungsborn, appointed in 1141, was Heinrich I, a half-brother of the founder, Count Siegfried IV.
near Helmstedt
. In 1145 Amelungsborn provided the entire community (12 monks and an abbot) for the foundation of Riddagshausen Abbey
near Braunschweig
, of which it was thus the mother house.
Amelungsborn was also the mother house of the rich and powerful Doberan Abbey
(in the present Bad Doberan
near Rostock
), in 1171 and again in 1176, at the instigation of the missionary bishop Berno
, once a monk of Amelungsborn, who in 1155 became Bishop of Mecklenburg and when in 1160 the seat of the bishopric was moved, the first Bishop of Schwerin.
Further foundations at one remove were at Isenhagen-Marienrode near Wittingen
and Wahlshausen near Fuldatal
, daughter houses of Riddagshausen, and Dargun Abbey and Pelplin Abbey, daughter houses of Doberan. Amelungsborn became the richest monastery of the Welf sphere of influence, and the one most closely connected with the German colonisation to the east. By about 1280 the community numbered 50 monks and 90 lay-brothers.
Even after the alienation of their Mecklenburg
estates, principally round Satow
and Dranse, in the 14th century, Amelungsborn Abbey remained an extensive landowner, thanks largely to the generosity of the Edelherren of Homburg, successors of the founder, and the Counts of Everstein, who gave many estates between the Weser and Leine
, among them lands at Allersheim near Holzminden
, Schnedinghausen near Moringen
, Erzhausen, Bruchhof and Holtershausen near Greene, besides possessions in the towns of Einbeck
, Höxter
and Hameln, and forests near the abbey itself.
In 1568 Duke Julius of Brunswick implemented the Reformation in his realm, and the abbot and community converted to Lutheranism. The first Lutheran abbot was Andreas Steinhauer (d. 1588), who founded the school for which the abbey was from this point on principally known.
In 1760 the abbey school was transferred to Holzminden
by Duke Charles I of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and merged with the town school, the predecessor of the present Campe Gymnasium.
Under the rule of Napoleon in 1806 Amelungsborn Abbey was dissolved, but by an anomaly the position of abbot remained. When in 1875 the school was taken over by the state and the educational duties of the abbey ended, the office of abbot remained as an honorary title for members of the senior Brunswick clergy
From 1912 the position was left vacant for political reasons. In 1941 the church was transferred to the Hanover State Church (Landeskirche Hannover). The church senate assumed the rights of the previous territorial lords and took over responsibility for the abbey.
the buildings were severely damaged, including the outer ring wall, on 8 April 1945, when the premises were heavily bombed by American troops in pursuit of fleeing SS units. The church sustained particularly heavy damage, and the south side of the nave and the east window of 1350 were totally destroyed. Restoration work took place from 1954 to 1959.
Amelungsborn Abbey, also Amelunxborn Abbey (Kloster Amelungsborn) near Negenborn
and Stadtoldendorf
, in the Landkreis of Holzminden
in the Weserbergland
, was the second oldest Cistercian foundation in Lower Saxony
, Germany
, after Walkenried Abbey
. It survived the Reformation
by becoming Lutheran, and with Loccum Abbey
, also previously Cistercian, is one of the only two Lutheran monasteries in Germany with an uninterrupted tradition.
The abbey church, St. Mary's, is also the parish church of the abbey's former estate villages Negenborn and Holenberg
.
.
Siegfried IV, the last Count of Northeim-Boyneburg and Homburg gave the land at Amelungsborn for the foundation of a Cistercian monastery, which was officially settled by a community of monks from Altenkamp Abbey on 20 November 1135.
With the establishment of this monastery and of the nearby Burg Homburg, built at around the same time, it seems that Count Siegfried was aiming to secure a part of his possessions that lay distant from his ancestral seat in North Hessen.
No foundation charter has survived, although there is a confirmation dated 5 December 1129 by Pope Honorius II
. Nevertheless an interval of six years between foundation and settlement fits the general timescale of Cistercian foundations.
The abbey was dedicated in 1135 by Bernhard I, Bishop of Hildesheim. The first abbot of Amelungsborn, appointed in 1141, was Heinrich I, a half-brother of the founder, Count Siegfried IV.
near Helmstedt
. In 1145 Amelungsborn provided the entire community (12 monks and an abbot) for the foundation of Riddagshausen Abbey
near Braunschweig
, of which it was thus the mother house.
Amelungsborn was also the mother house of the rich and powerful Doberan Abbey
(in the present Bad Doberan
near Rostock
), in 1171 and again in 1176, at the instigation of the missionary bishop Berno
, once a monk of Amelungsborn, who in 1155 became Bishop of Mecklenburg and when in 1160 the seat of the bishopric was moved, the first Bishop of Schwerin.
Further foundations at one remove were at Isenhagen-Marienrode near Wittingen
and Wahlshausen near Fuldatal
, daughter houses of Riddagshausen, and Dargun Abbey and Pelplin Abbey, daughter houses of Doberan. Amelungsborn became the richest monastery of the Welf sphere of influence, and the one most closely connected with the German colonisation to the east. By about 1280 the community numbered 50 monks and 90 lay-brothers.
Even after the alienation of their Mecklenburg
estates, principally round Satow
and Dranse, in the 14th century, Amelungsborn Abbey remained an extensive landowner, thanks largely to the generosity of the Edelherren of Homburg, successors of the founder, and the Counts of Everstein, who gave many estates between the Weser and Leine
, among them lands at Allersheim near Holzminden
, Schnedinghausen near Moringen
, Erzhausen, Bruchhof and Holtershausen near Greene, besides possessions in the towns of Einbeck
, Höxter
and Hameln, and forests near the abbey itself.
In 1568 Duke Julius of Brunswick implemented the Reformation in his realm, and the abbot and community converted to Lutheranism. The first Lutheran abbot was Andreas Steinhauer (d. 1588), who founded the school for which the abbey was from this point on principally known.
In 1760 the abbey school was transferred to Holzminden
by Duke Charles I of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and merged with the town school, the predecessor of the present Campe Gymnasium.
Under the rule of Napoleon in 1806 Amelungsborn Abbey was dissolved, but by an anomaly the position of abbot remained. When in 1875 the school was taken over by the state and the educational duties of the abbey ended, the office of abbot remained as an honorary title for members of the senior Brunswick clergy
From 1912 the position was left vacant for political reasons. In 1941 the church was transferred to the Hanover State Church (Landeskirche Hannover). The church senate assumed the rights of the previous territorial lords and took over responsibility for the abbey.
the buildings were severely damaged, including the outer ring wall, on 8 April 1945, when the premises were heavily bombed by American troops in pursuit of fleeing SS units. The church sustained particularly heavy damage, and the south side of the nave and the east window of 1350 were totally destroyed. Restoration work took place from 1954 to 1959.
Amelungsborn Abbey, also Amelunxborn Abbey (Kloster Amelungsborn) near Negenborn
and Stadtoldendorf
, in the Landkreis of Holzminden
in the Weserbergland
, was the second oldest Cistercian foundation in Lower Saxony
, Germany
, after Walkenried Abbey
. It survived the Reformation
by becoming Lutheran, and with Loccum Abbey
, also previously Cistercian, is one of the only two Lutheran monasteries in Germany with an uninterrupted tradition.
The abbey church, St. Mary's, is also the parish church of the abbey's former estate villages Negenborn and Holenberg
.
.
Siegfried IV, the last Count of Northeim-Boyneburg and Homburg gave the land at Amelungsborn for the foundation of a Cistercian monastery, which was officially settled by a community of monks from Altenkamp Abbey on 20 November 1135.
With the establishment of this monastery and of the nearby Burg Homburg, built at around the same time, it seems that Count Siegfried was aiming to secure a part of his possessions that lay distant from his ancestral seat in North Hessen.
No foundation charter has survived, although there is a confirmation dated 5 December 1129 by Pope Honorius II
. Nevertheless an interval of six years between foundation and settlement fits the general timescale of Cistercian foundations.
The abbey was dedicated in 1135 by Bernhard I, Bishop of Hildesheim. The first abbot of Amelungsborn, appointed in 1141, was Heinrich I, a half-brother of the founder, Count Siegfried IV.
near Helmstedt
. In 1145 Amelungsborn provided the entire community (12 monks and an abbot) for the foundation of Riddagshausen Abbey
near Braunschweig
, of which it was thus the mother house.
Amelungsborn was also the mother house of the rich and powerful Doberan Abbey
(in the present Bad Doberan
near Rostock
), in 1171 and again in 1176, at the instigation of the missionary bishop Berno
, once a monk of Amelungsborn, who in 1155 became Bishop of Mecklenburg and when in 1160 the seat of the bishopric was moved, the first Bishop of Schwerin.
Further foundations at one remove were at Isenhagen-Marienrode near Wittingen
and Wahlshausen near Fuldatal
, daughter houses of Riddagshausen, and Dargun Abbey and Pelplin Abbey, daughter houses of Doberan. Amelungsborn became the richest monastery of the Welf sphere of influence, and the one most closely connected with the German colonisation to the east. By about 1280 the community numbered 50 monks and 90 lay-brothers.
Even after the alienation of their Mecklenburg
estates, principally round Satow
and Dranse, in the 14th century, Amelungsborn Abbey remained an extensive landowner, thanks largely to the generosity of the Edelherren of Homburg, successors of the founder, and the Counts of Everstein, who gave many estates between the Weser and Leine
, among them lands at Allersheim near Holzminden
, Schnedinghausen near Moringen
, Erzhausen, Bruchhof and Holtershausen near Greene, besides possessions in the towns of Einbeck
, Höxter
and Hameln, and forests near the abbey itself.
In 1568 Duke Julius of Brunswick implemented the Reformation in his realm, and the abbot and community converted to Lutheranism. The first Lutheran abbot was Andreas Steinhauer (d. 1588), who founded the school for which the abbey was from this point on principally known.
In 1760 the abbey school was transferred to Holzminden
by Duke Charles I of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and merged with the town school, the predecessor of the present Campe Gymnasium.
Under the rule of Napoleon in 1806 Amelungsborn Abbey was dissolved, but by an anomaly the position of abbot remained. When in 1875 the school was taken over by the state and the educational duties of the abbey ended, the office of abbot remained as an honorary title for members of the senior Brunswick clergy
From 1912 the position was left vacant for political reasons. In 1941 the church was transferred to the Hanover State Church (Landeskirche Hannover). The church senate assumed the rights of the previous territorial lords and took over responsibility for the abbey.
the buildings were severely damaged, including the outer ring wall, on 8 April 1945, when the premises were heavily bombed by American troops in pursuit of fleeing SS units. The church sustained particularly heavy damage, and the south side of the nave and the east window of 1350 were totally destroyed. Restoration work took place from 1954 to 1959.
Negenborn
Negenborn is a municipality in the district of Holzminden, in Lower Saxony, Germany....
and Stadtoldendorf
Stadtoldendorf
Stadtoldendorf is a town in the middle Holzminden district, Lower Saxony, Germany. Stadtoldendorf is the seat of the Samtgemeinde Eschershausen-Stadtoldendorf.Allocation of seats in the local council electoral period 2006-2011:...
, in the Landkreis of Holzminden
Holzminden
Holzminden is a town in southern Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Holzminden. It is located directly on the river Weser, which here is the border to North Rhine-Westphalia.-History:...
in the Weserbergland
Weserbergland
The Weser Uplands is a hill region in Germany The Weser Uplands (German: Weserbergland) is a hill region (Bergland = uplands, hills or hill region) in Germany The Weser Uplands (German: Weserbergland) is a hill region (Bergland = uplands, hills or hill region) in Germany (Lower Saxony, Hesse,...
, was the second oldest Cistercian foundation in Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, after Walkenried Abbey
Walkenried Abbey
Walkenried Abbey was one of the most celebrated Cistercian abbeys of Germany, located in the village of Walkenried in the district of Osterode in Lower Saxony, Germany.-History:...
. It survived the Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
by becoming Lutheran, and with Loccum Abbey
Loccum Abbey
Loccum Abbey is a former Cistercian monastery in the town of Rehburg-Loccum, Lower Saxony, near Steinhude Lake.-History:...
, also previously Cistercian, is one of the only two Lutheran monasteries in Germany with an uninterrupted tradition.
The abbey church, St. Mary's, is also the parish church of the abbey's former estate villages Negenborn and Holenberg
Holenberg
Holenberg is a municipality in the district of Holzminden, in Lower Saxony, Germany....
.
Foundation
The site of the villa Amelungsborn to the west of the present Stadtoldendorf was originally part of the ancestral lands of the Counts of NortheimNortheim
Northeim is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, seat of the district of Northeim, with, as of 2002, a population of 31 000. It's located on the German Half-Timbered House Road.-History:...
.
Siegfried IV, the last Count of Northeim-Boyneburg and Homburg gave the land at Amelungsborn for the foundation of a Cistercian monastery, which was officially settled by a community of monks from Altenkamp Abbey on 20 November 1135.
With the establishment of this monastery and of the nearby Burg Homburg, built at around the same time, it seems that Count Siegfried was aiming to secure a part of his possessions that lay distant from his ancestral seat in North Hessen.
No foundation charter has survived, although there is a confirmation dated 5 December 1129 by Pope Honorius II
Pope Honorius II
Pope Honorius II , born Lamberto Scannabecchi, was pope from December 21, 1124, to February 13, 1130. Although from a humble background, his obvious intellect and outstanding abilities saw him promoted through the ecclesiastical hierarchy...
. Nevertheless an interval of six years between foundation and settlement fits the general timescale of Cistercian foundations.
The abbey was dedicated in 1135 by Bernhard I, Bishop of Hildesheim. The first abbot of Amelungsborn, appointed in 1141, was Heinrich I, a half-brother of the founder, Count Siegfried IV.
Development and daughter houses
The new monastery prospered and was soon able to extend the settlements of the order. As early as 1138 a monk of Amelungsborn was appointed abbot of Mariental AbbeyMariental Abbey
Mariental Abbey in the present Mariental in Lower Saxony, Germany, is a former Cistercian monastery founded in 1138, along with Marienberg Abbey in Helmstedt, by Pfalzgraf Friedrich II von Sommerschenburg....
near Helmstedt
Helmstedt
Helmstedt is a city located at the eastern edge of the German state of Lower Saxony. It is the capital of the District of Helmstedt. Helmstedt has 26,000 inhabitants . In former times the city was also called Helmstädt....
. In 1145 Amelungsborn provided the entire community (12 monks and an abbot) for the foundation of Riddagshausen Abbey
Riddagshausen Abbey
Riddagshausen Abbey was a Cistercian monastery just outside the city of Brunswick in Germany.It was founded as Marienzelle by Ludolf the Wend, a ministerialis of Henry the Lion and steward of Brunswick, and settled in 1145 by monks from Amelungsborn Abbey...
near Braunschweig
Braunschweig
Braunschweig , is a city of 247,400 people, located in the federal-state of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located north of the Harz mountains at the farthest navigable point of the Oker river, which connects to the North Sea via the rivers Aller and Weser....
, of which it was thus the mother house.
Amelungsborn was also the mother house of the rich and powerful Doberan Abbey
Doberan Abbey
Doberan Abbey is a former Cistercian monastery in Bad Doberan, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The church continues in use as Doberan Minster ....
(in the present Bad Doberan
Bad Doberan
Bad Doberan is a town in the district of Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It was the capital of the former district of Bad Doberan. As of 2010 its population was 11,325.-Geography:...
near Rostock
Rostock
Rostock -Early history:In the 11th century Polabian Slavs founded a settlement at the Warnow river called Roztoc ; the name Rostock is derived from that designation. The Danish king Valdemar I set the town aflame in 1161.Afterwards the place was settled by German traders...
), in 1171 and again in 1176, at the instigation of the missionary bishop Berno
Berno, Apostle of the Obotrites
Berno, Bishop of Schwerin, also known as the Apostle of the Obotrites or Berno of Amelungsborn was a pre-eminent missionary to the Obotrites in the territory of Mecklenburg, Germany, and the first Bishop of Schwerin.- Life :...
, once a monk of Amelungsborn, who in 1155 became Bishop of Mecklenburg and when in 1160 the seat of the bishopric was moved, the first Bishop of Schwerin.
Further foundations at one remove were at Isenhagen-Marienrode near Wittingen
Wittingen
Wittingen is a town in the district of Gifhorn, Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approx. 30 km northeast of Gifhorn, and 30 km southeast of Uelzen.- Division of the town :Wittingen consists of 27 districts:- Demographic data :...
and Wahlshausen near Fuldatal
Fuldatal
Fuldatal is a municipality in the district of Kassel, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated along the Fulda River, 5 km northeast of Kassel....
, daughter houses of Riddagshausen, and Dargun Abbey and Pelplin Abbey, daughter houses of Doberan. Amelungsborn became the richest monastery of the Welf sphere of influence, and the one most closely connected with the German colonisation to the east. By about 1280 the community numbered 50 monks and 90 lay-brothers.
Even after the alienation of their Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern...
estates, principally round Satow
Satow, Germany
Satow is a municipality in the Rostock district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany....
and Dranse, in the 14th century, Amelungsborn Abbey remained an extensive landowner, thanks largely to the generosity of the Edelherren of Homburg, successors of the founder, and the Counts of Everstein, who gave many estates between the Weser and Leine
Leine
The Leine is a river in Thuringia and Lower Saxony, Germany. It is a left tributary of the Aller river and 281 km in length.The river's source is located close to the town of Leinefelde in Thuringia...
, among them lands at Allersheim near Holzminden
Holzminden
Holzminden is a town in southern Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Holzminden. It is located directly on the river Weser, which here is the border to North Rhine-Westphalia.-History:...
, Schnedinghausen near Moringen
Moringen
Moringen is a town in the district Northeim, in the southern part of Lower Saxony, Germany. The town consists of the center Moringen and eight surrounding villages.-History:The town and its villages were founded over a thousand years ago....
, Erzhausen, Bruchhof and Holtershausen near Greene, besides possessions in the towns of Einbeck
Einbeck
Einbeck is a town in the district Northeim, in southern Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located on the German Timber-Frame Road.-Economy:Einbeck is famous for its 600 year old beer brewery, home of Einbecker Bier, the origin for the term Bock beer...
, Höxter
Höxter
Höxter is the seat of the Höxter district, and a town in eastern North Rhine-Westphalia on the left bank of the river Weser, 52 km north of Kassel in the centre of the Weser Uplands...
and Hameln, and forests near the abbey itself.
After the Reformation
During the first half of the 16th century Amelungsborn fell increasingly into the power of the Welf territorial princes. In 1549 the abbey was forced to cede the lucrative farm at Allersheim to Duke Henry the Younger of Brunswick.In 1568 Duke Julius of Brunswick implemented the Reformation in his realm, and the abbot and community converted to Lutheranism. The first Lutheran abbot was Andreas Steinhauer (d. 1588), who founded the school for which the abbey was from this point on principally known.
In 1760 the abbey school was transferred to Holzminden
Holzminden
Holzminden is a town in southern Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Holzminden. It is located directly on the river Weser, which here is the border to North Rhine-Westphalia.-History:...
by Duke Charles I of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and merged with the town school, the predecessor of the present Campe Gymnasium.
Under the rule of Napoleon in 1806 Amelungsborn Abbey was dissolved, but by an anomaly the position of abbot remained. When in 1875 the school was taken over by the state and the educational duties of the abbey ended, the office of abbot remained as an honorary title for members of the senior Brunswick clergy
From 1912 the position was left vacant for political reasons. In 1941 the church was transferred to the Hanover State Church (Landeskirche Hannover). The church senate assumed the rights of the previous territorial lords and took over responsibility for the abbey.
World War II
In World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the buildings were severely damaged, including the outer ring wall, on 8 April 1945, when the premises were heavily bombed by American troops in pursuit of fleeing SS units. The church sustained particularly heavy damage, and the south side of the nave and the east window of 1350 were totally destroyed. Restoration work took place from 1954 to 1959.
Revival
In 1960 Christhard Mahrenholz was appointed 54th abbot, assembled a community and founded a society of laymen, Familiaritas. The community, as at 2008, consists of the abbot and eight religious, while the lay brotherhood "Familiaritas" has about 30 members.Abbots
- Heinrich I (1141–1143)
- Everhelm (c. 1150-1184)
- Johann I (1186)
- Hoiko (1196–1201)
- Walbert (1204/1205)
- Konrad (1209)
- Gottschalk (1213–1235)
- Dietrich (1236–1245)
- Johann II (1246–1251)
- Arnold (1254–1269)
- Moritz (1270–1291)
- Balduin (1293–1301)
- Bertram (1302–1311)
- Gieseler (1317–1322)
- Ludolf I (1326–1329)
- Heinrich II (1334–1337)
- Ludolf II (1339–1353)
- Engelhard (1355–1371)
- Johann (III) Maske (1377–1378)
- Heinrich (III) Rikolf (1400–1415)
- Reiner (1417–1426)
- Herwig (1431–1432)
- Johann IV (1433)
- Saner von Horn (1438–1462)
- Johann (V) Alremann (1463–1464)
- Heinrich (IV) von Horn (1465–1477)
- Johann (VI) von Dassel (1477–1483)
- Bernhard von Haselünne (1483–1485)
- Werner von der Werder (1487–1495)
- Gebhard Maske (1499–1510)
- Hermann Kannegießer (1516–1531)
- Veit Teckermester (1533–1553)
- Andreas Steinhauer (1555–1588) - the first Lutheran abbot
- Vitus Buchius (1588–1598)
- Anton Georgius (1598–1625)
- Theodor Berkelmann (1625–1645)
- Statius Fabricius (1647–1649)
- Hermann Topp(ius) (1655–1675)
- Herbert Rudolphi (1676–1684)
- Andreas Overbeck (1685–1686)
- Andreas Rudeloff (1686–1701)
- Johann Georg Werner (1702–1711)
- Christian Heinrich Behm (1712–1740)
- Anton August Osterreich (1740–1745)
- Theodor Wilhelm Ritmeister (1747–1774)
- Johann Friedrich Häseler (1774–1797)
- Jakob Christian Weland (1798–1813) - the abbey was dissolved during this abbacy
- Theodor Christoph Grotian (1814–1829)
- Franz Heinrich Wilhelm Rägener (1831–1837)
- Theodor Wilhelm Heinrich Bank (1840–1843)
- Wilhelm Hille (1845–1880)
- Karl Julius Franz Stausebach (1881–1892)
- Johann Karl Theodor Schütte (1900–1912)
- position of abbot vacant (1912–1960)
- 1960–1971: Christhard Mahrenholz - re-founder
- 1971–1989: Kurt Schmidt-Clausen
- 1989–1996: Ernst Henze
- 1996–2002: Hans-Christian Drömann
- 2002– : Eckhard Gorka
Amelungsborn Abbey, also Amelunxborn Abbey (Kloster Amelungsborn) near Negenborn
Negenborn
Negenborn is a municipality in the district of Holzminden, in Lower Saxony, Germany....
and Stadtoldendorf
Stadtoldendorf
Stadtoldendorf is a town in the middle Holzminden district, Lower Saxony, Germany. Stadtoldendorf is the seat of the Samtgemeinde Eschershausen-Stadtoldendorf.Allocation of seats in the local council electoral period 2006-2011:...
, in the Landkreis of Holzminden
Holzminden
Holzminden is a town in southern Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Holzminden. It is located directly on the river Weser, which here is the border to North Rhine-Westphalia.-History:...
in the Weserbergland
Weserbergland
The Weser Uplands is a hill region in Germany The Weser Uplands (German: Weserbergland) is a hill region (Bergland = uplands, hills or hill region) in Germany The Weser Uplands (German: Weserbergland) is a hill region (Bergland = uplands, hills or hill region) in Germany (Lower Saxony, Hesse,...
, was the second oldest Cistercian foundation in Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, after Walkenried Abbey
Walkenried Abbey
Walkenried Abbey was one of the most celebrated Cistercian abbeys of Germany, located in the village of Walkenried in the district of Osterode in Lower Saxony, Germany.-History:...
. It survived the Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
by becoming Lutheran, and with Loccum Abbey
Loccum Abbey
Loccum Abbey is a former Cistercian monastery in the town of Rehburg-Loccum, Lower Saxony, near Steinhude Lake.-History:...
, also previously Cistercian, is one of the only two Lutheran monasteries in Germany with an uninterrupted tradition.
The abbey church, St. Mary's, is also the parish church of the abbey's former estate villages Negenborn and Holenberg
Holenberg
Holenberg is a municipality in the district of Holzminden, in Lower Saxony, Germany....
.
Foundation
The site of the villa Amelungsborn to the west of the present Stadtoldendorf was originally part of the ancestral lands of the Counts of NortheimNortheim
Northeim is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, seat of the district of Northeim, with, as of 2002, a population of 31 000. It's located on the German Half-Timbered House Road.-History:...
.
Siegfried IV, the last Count of Northeim-Boyneburg and Homburg gave the land at Amelungsborn for the foundation of a Cistercian monastery, which was officially settled by a community of monks from Altenkamp Abbey on 20 November 1135.
With the establishment of this monastery and of the nearby Burg Homburg, built at around the same time, it seems that Count Siegfried was aiming to secure a part of his possessions that lay distant from his ancestral seat in North Hessen.
No foundation charter has survived, although there is a confirmation dated 5 December 1129 by Pope Honorius II
Pope Honorius II
Pope Honorius II , born Lamberto Scannabecchi, was pope from December 21, 1124, to February 13, 1130. Although from a humble background, his obvious intellect and outstanding abilities saw him promoted through the ecclesiastical hierarchy...
. Nevertheless an interval of six years between foundation and settlement fits the general timescale of Cistercian foundations.
The abbey was dedicated in 1135 by Bernhard I, Bishop of Hildesheim. The first abbot of Amelungsborn, appointed in 1141, was Heinrich I, a half-brother of the founder, Count Siegfried IV.
Development and daughter houses
The new monastery prospered and was soon able to extend the settlements of the order. As early as 1138 a monk of Amelungsborn was appointed abbot of Mariental AbbeyMariental Abbey
Mariental Abbey in the present Mariental in Lower Saxony, Germany, is a former Cistercian monastery founded in 1138, along with Marienberg Abbey in Helmstedt, by Pfalzgraf Friedrich II von Sommerschenburg....
near Helmstedt
Helmstedt
Helmstedt is a city located at the eastern edge of the German state of Lower Saxony. It is the capital of the District of Helmstedt. Helmstedt has 26,000 inhabitants . In former times the city was also called Helmstädt....
. In 1145 Amelungsborn provided the entire community (12 monks and an abbot) for the foundation of Riddagshausen Abbey
Riddagshausen Abbey
Riddagshausen Abbey was a Cistercian monastery just outside the city of Brunswick in Germany.It was founded as Marienzelle by Ludolf the Wend, a ministerialis of Henry the Lion and steward of Brunswick, and settled in 1145 by monks from Amelungsborn Abbey...
near Braunschweig
Braunschweig
Braunschweig , is a city of 247,400 people, located in the federal-state of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located north of the Harz mountains at the farthest navigable point of the Oker river, which connects to the North Sea via the rivers Aller and Weser....
, of which it was thus the mother house.
Amelungsborn was also the mother house of the rich and powerful Doberan Abbey
Doberan Abbey
Doberan Abbey is a former Cistercian monastery in Bad Doberan, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The church continues in use as Doberan Minster ....
(in the present Bad Doberan
Bad Doberan
Bad Doberan is a town in the district of Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It was the capital of the former district of Bad Doberan. As of 2010 its population was 11,325.-Geography:...
near Rostock
Rostock
Rostock -Early history:In the 11th century Polabian Slavs founded a settlement at the Warnow river called Roztoc ; the name Rostock is derived from that designation. The Danish king Valdemar I set the town aflame in 1161.Afterwards the place was settled by German traders...
), in 1171 and again in 1176, at the instigation of the missionary bishop Berno
Berno, Apostle of the Obotrites
Berno, Bishop of Schwerin, also known as the Apostle of the Obotrites or Berno of Amelungsborn was a pre-eminent missionary to the Obotrites in the territory of Mecklenburg, Germany, and the first Bishop of Schwerin.- Life :...
, once a monk of Amelungsborn, who in 1155 became Bishop of Mecklenburg and when in 1160 the seat of the bishopric was moved, the first Bishop of Schwerin.
Further foundations at one remove were at Isenhagen-Marienrode near Wittingen
Wittingen
Wittingen is a town in the district of Gifhorn, Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approx. 30 km northeast of Gifhorn, and 30 km southeast of Uelzen.- Division of the town :Wittingen consists of 27 districts:- Demographic data :...
and Wahlshausen near Fuldatal
Fuldatal
Fuldatal is a municipality in the district of Kassel, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated along the Fulda River, 5 km northeast of Kassel....
, daughter houses of Riddagshausen, and Dargun Abbey and Pelplin Abbey, daughter houses of Doberan. Amelungsborn became the richest monastery of the Welf sphere of influence, and the one most closely connected with the German colonisation to the east. By about 1280 the community numbered 50 monks and 90 lay-brothers.
Even after the alienation of their Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern...
estates, principally round Satow
Satow, Germany
Satow is a municipality in the Rostock district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany....
and Dranse, in the 14th century, Amelungsborn Abbey remained an extensive landowner, thanks largely to the generosity of the Edelherren of Homburg, successors of the founder, and the Counts of Everstein, who gave many estates between the Weser and Leine
Leine
The Leine is a river in Thuringia and Lower Saxony, Germany. It is a left tributary of the Aller river and 281 km in length.The river's source is located close to the town of Leinefelde in Thuringia...
, among them lands at Allersheim near Holzminden
Holzminden
Holzminden is a town in southern Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Holzminden. It is located directly on the river Weser, which here is the border to North Rhine-Westphalia.-History:...
, Schnedinghausen near Moringen
Moringen
Moringen is a town in the district Northeim, in the southern part of Lower Saxony, Germany. The town consists of the center Moringen and eight surrounding villages.-History:The town and its villages were founded over a thousand years ago....
, Erzhausen, Bruchhof and Holtershausen near Greene, besides possessions in the towns of Einbeck
Einbeck
Einbeck is a town in the district Northeim, in southern Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located on the German Timber-Frame Road.-Economy:Einbeck is famous for its 600 year old beer brewery, home of Einbecker Bier, the origin for the term Bock beer...
, Höxter
Höxter
Höxter is the seat of the Höxter district, and a town in eastern North Rhine-Westphalia on the left bank of the river Weser, 52 km north of Kassel in the centre of the Weser Uplands...
and Hameln, and forests near the abbey itself.
After the Reformation
During the first half of the 16th century Amelungsborn fell increasingly into the power of the Welf territorial princes. In 1549 the abbey was forced to cede the lucrative farm at Allersheim to Duke Henry the Younger of Brunswick.In 1568 Duke Julius of Brunswick implemented the Reformation in his realm, and the abbot and community converted to Lutheranism. The first Lutheran abbot was Andreas Steinhauer (d. 1588), who founded the school for which the abbey was from this point on principally known.
In 1760 the abbey school was transferred to Holzminden
Holzminden
Holzminden is a town in southern Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Holzminden. It is located directly on the river Weser, which here is the border to North Rhine-Westphalia.-History:...
by Duke Charles I of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and merged with the town school, the predecessor of the present Campe Gymnasium.
Under the rule of Napoleon in 1806 Amelungsborn Abbey was dissolved, but by an anomaly the position of abbot remained. When in 1875 the school was taken over by the state and the educational duties of the abbey ended, the office of abbot remained as an honorary title for members of the senior Brunswick clergy
From 1912 the position was left vacant for political reasons. In 1941 the church was transferred to the Hanover State Church (Landeskirche Hannover). The church senate assumed the rights of the previous territorial lords and took over responsibility for the abbey.
World War II
In World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the buildings were severely damaged, including the outer ring wall, on 8 April 1945, when the premises were heavily bombed by American troops in pursuit of fleeing SS units. The church sustained particularly heavy damage, and the south side of the nave and the east window of 1350 were totally destroyed. Restoration work took place from 1954 to 1959.
Revival
In 1960 Christhard Mahrenholz was appointed 54th abbot, assembled a community and founded a society of laymen, Familiaritas. The community, as at 2008, consists of the abbot and eight religious, while the lay brotherhood "Familiaritas" has about 30 members.Abbots
- Heinrich I (1141–1143)
- Everhelm (c. 1150-1184)
- Johann I (1186)
- Hoiko (1196–1201)
- Walbert (1204/1205)
- Konrad (1209)
- Gottschalk (1213–1235)
- Dietrich (1236–1245)
- Johann II (1246–1251)
- Arnold (1254–1269)
- Moritz (1270–1291)
- Balduin (1293–1301)
- Bertram (1302–1311)
- Gieseler (1317–1322)
- Ludolf I (1326–1329)
- Heinrich II (1334–1337)
- Ludolf II (1339–1353)
- Engelhard (1355–1371)
- Johann (III) Maske (1377–1378)
- Heinrich (III) Rikolf (1400–1415)
- Reiner (1417–1426)
- Herwig (1431–1432)
- Johann IV (1433)
- Saner von Horn (1438–1462)
- Johann (V) Alremann (1463–1464)
- Heinrich (IV) von Horn (1465–1477)
- Johann (VI) von Dassel (1477–1483)
- Bernhard von Haselünne (1483–1485)
- Werner von der Werder (1487–1495)
- Gebhard Maske (1499–1510)
- Hermann Kannegießer (1516–1531)
- Veit Teckermester (1533–1553)
- Andreas Steinhauer (1555–1588) - the first Lutheran abbot
- Vitus Buchius (1588–1598)
- Anton Georgius (1598–1625)
- Theodor Berkelmann (1625–1645)
- Statius Fabricius (1647–1649)
- Hermann Topp(ius) (1655–1675)
- Herbert Rudolphi (1676–1684)
- Andreas Overbeck (1685–1686)
- Andreas Rudeloff (1686–1701)
- Johann Georg Werner (1702–1711)
- Christian Heinrich Behm (1712–1740)
- Anton August Osterreich (1740–1745)
- Theodor Wilhelm Ritmeister (1747–1774)
- Johann Friedrich Häseler (1774–1797)
- Jakob Christian Weland (1798–1813) - the abbey was dissolved during this abbacy
- Theodor Christoph Grotian (1814–1829)
- Franz Heinrich Wilhelm Rägener (1831–1837)
- Theodor Wilhelm Heinrich Bank (1840–1843)
- Wilhelm Hille (1845–1880)
- Karl Julius Franz Stausebach (1881–1892)
- Johann Karl Theodor Schütte (1900–1912)
- position of abbot vacant (1912–1960)
- 1960–1971: Christhard Mahrenholz - re-founder
- 1971–1989: Kurt Schmidt-Clausen
- 1989–1996: Ernst Henze
- 1996–2002: Hans-Christian Drömann
- 2002– : Eckhard Gorka
Amelungsborn Abbey, also Amelunxborn Abbey (Kloster Amelungsborn) near Negenborn
Negenborn
Negenborn is a municipality in the district of Holzminden, in Lower Saxony, Germany....
and Stadtoldendorf
Stadtoldendorf
Stadtoldendorf is a town in the middle Holzminden district, Lower Saxony, Germany. Stadtoldendorf is the seat of the Samtgemeinde Eschershausen-Stadtoldendorf.Allocation of seats in the local council electoral period 2006-2011:...
, in the Landkreis of Holzminden
Holzminden
Holzminden is a town in southern Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Holzminden. It is located directly on the river Weser, which here is the border to North Rhine-Westphalia.-History:...
in the Weserbergland
Weserbergland
The Weser Uplands is a hill region in Germany The Weser Uplands (German: Weserbergland) is a hill region (Bergland = uplands, hills or hill region) in Germany The Weser Uplands (German: Weserbergland) is a hill region (Bergland = uplands, hills or hill region) in Germany (Lower Saxony, Hesse,...
, was the second oldest Cistercian foundation in Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, after Walkenried Abbey
Walkenried Abbey
Walkenried Abbey was one of the most celebrated Cistercian abbeys of Germany, located in the village of Walkenried in the district of Osterode in Lower Saxony, Germany.-History:...
. It survived the Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
by becoming Lutheran, and with Loccum Abbey
Loccum Abbey
Loccum Abbey is a former Cistercian monastery in the town of Rehburg-Loccum, Lower Saxony, near Steinhude Lake.-History:...
, also previously Cistercian, is one of the only two Lutheran monasteries in Germany with an uninterrupted tradition.
The abbey church, St. Mary's, is also the parish church of the abbey's former estate villages Negenborn and Holenberg
Holenberg
Holenberg is a municipality in the district of Holzminden, in Lower Saxony, Germany....
.
Foundation
The site of the villa Amelungsborn to the west of the present Stadtoldendorf was originally part of the ancestral lands of the Counts of NortheimNortheim
Northeim is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, seat of the district of Northeim, with, as of 2002, a population of 31 000. It's located on the German Half-Timbered House Road.-History:...
.
Siegfried IV, the last Count of Northeim-Boyneburg and Homburg gave the land at Amelungsborn for the foundation of a Cistercian monastery, which was officially settled by a community of monks from Altenkamp Abbey on 20 November 1135.
With the establishment of this monastery and of the nearby Burg Homburg, built at around the same time, it seems that Count Siegfried was aiming to secure a part of his possessions that lay distant from his ancestral seat in North Hessen.
No foundation charter has survived, although there is a confirmation dated 5 December 1129 by Pope Honorius II
Pope Honorius II
Pope Honorius II , born Lamberto Scannabecchi, was pope from December 21, 1124, to February 13, 1130. Although from a humble background, his obvious intellect and outstanding abilities saw him promoted through the ecclesiastical hierarchy...
. Nevertheless an interval of six years between foundation and settlement fits the general timescale of Cistercian foundations.
The abbey was dedicated in 1135 by Bernhard I, Bishop of Hildesheim. The first abbot of Amelungsborn, appointed in 1141, was Heinrich I, a half-brother of the founder, Count Siegfried IV.
Development and daughter houses
The new monastery prospered and was soon able to extend the settlements of the order. As early as 1138 a monk of Amelungsborn was appointed abbot of Mariental AbbeyMariental Abbey
Mariental Abbey in the present Mariental in Lower Saxony, Germany, is a former Cistercian monastery founded in 1138, along with Marienberg Abbey in Helmstedt, by Pfalzgraf Friedrich II von Sommerschenburg....
near Helmstedt
Helmstedt
Helmstedt is a city located at the eastern edge of the German state of Lower Saxony. It is the capital of the District of Helmstedt. Helmstedt has 26,000 inhabitants . In former times the city was also called Helmstädt....
. In 1145 Amelungsborn provided the entire community (12 monks and an abbot) for the foundation of Riddagshausen Abbey
Riddagshausen Abbey
Riddagshausen Abbey was a Cistercian monastery just outside the city of Brunswick in Germany.It was founded as Marienzelle by Ludolf the Wend, a ministerialis of Henry the Lion and steward of Brunswick, and settled in 1145 by monks from Amelungsborn Abbey...
near Braunschweig
Braunschweig
Braunschweig , is a city of 247,400 people, located in the federal-state of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located north of the Harz mountains at the farthest navigable point of the Oker river, which connects to the North Sea via the rivers Aller and Weser....
, of which it was thus the mother house.
Amelungsborn was also the mother house of the rich and powerful Doberan Abbey
Doberan Abbey
Doberan Abbey is a former Cistercian monastery in Bad Doberan, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The church continues in use as Doberan Minster ....
(in the present Bad Doberan
Bad Doberan
Bad Doberan is a town in the district of Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It was the capital of the former district of Bad Doberan. As of 2010 its population was 11,325.-Geography:...
near Rostock
Rostock
Rostock -Early history:In the 11th century Polabian Slavs founded a settlement at the Warnow river called Roztoc ; the name Rostock is derived from that designation. The Danish king Valdemar I set the town aflame in 1161.Afterwards the place was settled by German traders...
), in 1171 and again in 1176, at the instigation of the missionary bishop Berno
Berno, Apostle of the Obotrites
Berno, Bishop of Schwerin, also known as the Apostle of the Obotrites or Berno of Amelungsborn was a pre-eminent missionary to the Obotrites in the territory of Mecklenburg, Germany, and the first Bishop of Schwerin.- Life :...
, once a monk of Amelungsborn, who in 1155 became Bishop of Mecklenburg and when in 1160 the seat of the bishopric was moved, the first Bishop of Schwerin.
Further foundations at one remove were at Isenhagen-Marienrode near Wittingen
Wittingen
Wittingen is a town in the district of Gifhorn, Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approx. 30 km northeast of Gifhorn, and 30 km southeast of Uelzen.- Division of the town :Wittingen consists of 27 districts:- Demographic data :...
and Wahlshausen near Fuldatal
Fuldatal
Fuldatal is a municipality in the district of Kassel, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated along the Fulda River, 5 km northeast of Kassel....
, daughter houses of Riddagshausen, and Dargun Abbey and Pelplin Abbey, daughter houses of Doberan. Amelungsborn became the richest monastery of the Welf sphere of influence, and the one most closely connected with the German colonisation to the east. By about 1280 the community numbered 50 monks and 90 lay-brothers.
Even after the alienation of their Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern...
estates, principally round Satow
Satow, Germany
Satow is a municipality in the Rostock district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany....
and Dranse, in the 14th century, Amelungsborn Abbey remained an extensive landowner, thanks largely to the generosity of the Edelherren of Homburg, successors of the founder, and the Counts of Everstein, who gave many estates between the Weser and Leine
Leine
The Leine is a river in Thuringia and Lower Saxony, Germany. It is a left tributary of the Aller river and 281 km in length.The river's source is located close to the town of Leinefelde in Thuringia...
, among them lands at Allersheim near Holzminden
Holzminden
Holzminden is a town in southern Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Holzminden. It is located directly on the river Weser, which here is the border to North Rhine-Westphalia.-History:...
, Schnedinghausen near Moringen
Moringen
Moringen is a town in the district Northeim, in the southern part of Lower Saxony, Germany. The town consists of the center Moringen and eight surrounding villages.-History:The town and its villages were founded over a thousand years ago....
, Erzhausen, Bruchhof and Holtershausen near Greene, besides possessions in the towns of Einbeck
Einbeck
Einbeck is a town in the district Northeim, in southern Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located on the German Timber-Frame Road.-Economy:Einbeck is famous for its 600 year old beer brewery, home of Einbecker Bier, the origin for the term Bock beer...
, Höxter
Höxter
Höxter is the seat of the Höxter district, and a town in eastern North Rhine-Westphalia on the left bank of the river Weser, 52 km north of Kassel in the centre of the Weser Uplands...
and Hameln, and forests near the abbey itself.
After the Reformation
During the first half of the 16th century Amelungsborn fell increasingly into the power of the Welf territorial princes. In 1549 the abbey was forced to cede the lucrative farm at Allersheim to Duke Henry the Younger of Brunswick.In 1568 Duke Julius of Brunswick implemented the Reformation in his realm, and the abbot and community converted to Lutheranism. The first Lutheran abbot was Andreas Steinhauer (d. 1588), who founded the school for which the abbey was from this point on principally known.
In 1760 the abbey school was transferred to Holzminden
Holzminden
Holzminden is a town in southern Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Holzminden. It is located directly on the river Weser, which here is the border to North Rhine-Westphalia.-History:...
by Duke Charles I of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and merged with the town school, the predecessor of the present Campe Gymnasium.
Under the rule of Napoleon in 1806 Amelungsborn Abbey was dissolved, but by an anomaly the position of abbot remained. When in 1875 the school was taken over by the state and the educational duties of the abbey ended, the office of abbot remained as an honorary title for members of the senior Brunswick clergy
From 1912 the position was left vacant for political reasons. In 1941 the church was transferred to the Hanover State Church (Landeskirche Hannover). The church senate assumed the rights of the previous territorial lords and took over responsibility for the abbey.
World War II
In World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the buildings were severely damaged, including the outer ring wall, on 8 April 1945, when the premises were heavily bombed by American troops in pursuit of fleeing SS units. The church sustained particularly heavy damage, and the south side of the nave and the east window of 1350 were totally destroyed. Restoration work took place from 1954 to 1959.
Revival
In 1960 Christhard Mahrenholz was appointed 54th abbot, assembled a community and founded a society of laymen, Familiaritas. The community, as at 2008, consists of the abbot and eight religious, while the lay brotherhood "Familiaritas" has about 30 members.Abbots
- Heinrich I (1141–1143)
- Everhelm (c. 1150-1184)
- Johann I (1186)
- Hoiko (1196–1201)
- Walbert (1204/1205)
- Konrad (1209)
- Gottschalk (1213–1235)
- Dietrich (1236–1245)
- Johann II (1246–1251)
- Arnold (1254–1269)
- Moritz (1270–1291)
- Balduin (1293–1301)
- Bertram (1302–1311)
- Gieseler (1317–1322)
- Ludolf I (1326–1329)
- Heinrich II (1334–1337)
- Ludolf II (1339–1353)
- Engelhard (1355–1371)
- Johann (III) Maske (1377–1378)
- Heinrich (III) Rikolf (1400–1415)
- Reiner (1417–1426)
- Herwig (1431–1432)
- Johann IV (1433)
- Saner von Horn (1438–1462)
- Johann (V) Alremann (1463–1464)
- Heinrich (IV) von Horn (1465–1477)
- Johann (VI) von Dassel (1477–1483)
- Bernhard von Haselünne (1483–1485)
- Werner von der Werder (1487–1495)
- Gebhard Maske (1499–1510)
- Hermann Kannegießer (1516–1531)
- Veit Teckermester (1533–1553)
- Andreas Steinhauer (1555–1588) - the first Lutheran abbot
- Vitus Buchius (1588–1598)
- Anton Georgius (1598–1625)
- Theodor Berkelmann (1625–1645)
- Statius Fabricius (1647–1649)
- Hermann Topp(ius) (1655–1675)
- Herbert Rudolphi (1676–1684)
- Andreas Overbeck (1685–1686)
- Andreas Rudeloff (1686–1701)
- Johann Georg Werner (1702–1711)
- Christian Heinrich Behm (1712–1740)
- Anton August Osterreich (1740–1745)
- Theodor Wilhelm Ritmeister (1747–1774)
- Johann Friedrich Häseler (1774–1797)
- Jakob Christian Weland (1798–1813) - the abbey was dissolved during this abbacy
- Theodor Christoph Grotian (1814–1829)
- Franz Heinrich Wilhelm Rägener (1831–1837)
- Theodor Wilhelm Heinrich Bank (1840–1843)
- Wilhelm Hille (1845–1880)
- Karl Julius Franz Stausebach (1881–1892)
- Johann Karl Theodor Schütte (1900–1912)
- position of abbot vacant (1912–1960)
- 1960–1971: Christhard Mahrenholz - re-founder
- 1971–1989: Kurt Schmidt-Clausen
- 1989–1996: Ernst Henze
- 1996–2002: Hans-Christian Drömann
- 2002– : Eckhard Gorka