Fahr Abbey
Encyclopedia
Fahr Abbey, is a Benedictine
nunnery
located in Würenlos
in the Canton of Aargau, Switzerland
. Situated in different cantons
, Einsiedeln Abbey
and the convent in Fahr are a double monastery
, controlled by the abbot
of Einsiedeln.
of Unterengstringen
in the canton of Zürich
in the Limmat Valley
. The convent
is not part of the municipality, although some administrative tasks are performed by the Würenlos authorities. Therefore, since January 2008 the monastic community has to pay taxes, and the nun
s are allowed to fulfill their political rights (votings etc.) in Würenlingen. The monastery has its own postal code, being 8109 Kloster Fahr.
river around Weiningen
and Unterengstringen
-Oberengstringen
to the Einsiedeln Abbey
to establish a Benedictine
nunnery. The bailiwick
rights were hold by the Regensberg family, since 1306 by the citizens of the city of Zürich
, and from 1434 to 1798 by the Meyer von Knonau family.
In addition to the Middle Ages
St. Nikolaus-Kapelle (Saint Nicholas
chapel, built around 10th century AD, now St. Anna Kapelle) and the late medieval Parish church
of the monastery, the Parish church of Weiningen was subordinated to the monastery. Around 1530, the monastery was abolished during the Reformation in Switzerland
, but in 1576 it was reopened.
Economical success around 1600 led to brisk construction activity: In 1678 the tavern
Zu den zwei Raben ("Two Ravens", being the sign of the Einsiedeln Abbey) was built, from 1685 to 1696 the convent building and the church tower were reneved, in 1703/04 the refectory
was built by Johann Moosbrugger, and the provost
building was erected in 1730/34. From 1743 to 1746 the monastery's church was painted with frescoes inside the building and on its walls by the Torricelli brothers.
In breaking down the old Grafschaft
Baden in 1803, the cantons of Zurich and Aargau established an exclave of Aargau within the canton of Zürich, being the former lands of the Fahr Abbey. The interventions of the canton of Aargau culminated in 1841 to close all monasteries within in the canton of Aargau, but it was reversed in 1843 for women's monasteries. The negotiations between Einsiedeln Abbey and the canton of Aargau on assets and influence were completed nearly 90 years later, in 1932: Aargau granted the independent authority of the monastic community. On February 1, 1944, the monastery established a Bäuerinnenschule, i.e. a peasant
school for women.
During World War II, from November 1943 to February 1944, 11 female Jewish refugees lived anonymous in the convent; they had to leave for unknown destination when the peasant school was opened.
On January 1, 2008, the monastery was assigned to the municipality of Würenlos. 117 years ago, Würenlos attempted for the first time to integrate the 1.48-hectare area of the monastery.
Martin Werlen, the Abbot of Einsiedeln, presented on January 22, 2009, a new convent seal, i.e. the Benedictine nuns are now even mistresses on the business of their monastery.
, the monastery has been part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Basel since 1828. The nunnery is dedicated to Saint Mary.
Since the very beginning, the nunnery has been controlled by the abbot
of Einsiedeln; the monastery is administered by a female prior
who is a member of the convent
in Fahr.
As of April 2010, 26 sisters (7 in 1873, 33 in 2000) are living in the monastery. The convent is administered by a (female) prior
. Silja Walter
(1919 - 2011), a renowned novelist, was the most prominent nun of the convent.
The nunnery is renowned for its agricultural school for women (Bäuerinnenschule) and the wine estate managed by the nuns, their students and around 30 external employees.
Products made by the monastery are liquors and honey, and a variety of other agricultural products among them fruits, vegetables, herbs, etc. The monastic community sells its products in a shop (from Monday to Saturday) situated in the monastery and provides a restaurant (from Wednesday to Sunday) in the former pilgrim
's hostel, built in 1678 AD. The 10th century AD St Anna chapel is also popular for weddings.
For tourists Fahr Abbey is a highlight in the Limmat Valley and a popular stop for hikers and bikers along the Limmat river. Fahr Abbey is listed as a Swiss heritage sites of national significance
.
Order of Saint Benedict
The Order of Saint Benedict is a Roman Catholic religious order of independent monastic communities that observe the Rule of St. Benedict. Within the order, each individual community maintains its own autonomy, while the organization as a whole exists to represent their mutual interests...
nunnery
Monastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
located in Würenlos
Würenlos
Würenlos is a municipality in the district of Baden in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland. It lies north of the river Limmat, next to the canton of Zürich, located in the Limmat Valley .-Geography:...
in the Canton of Aargau, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. Situated in different cantons
Cantons of Switzerland
The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the member states of the federal state of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereign state with its own borders, army and currency from the Treaty of Westphalia until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848...
, Einsiedeln Abbey
Einsiedeln Abbey
Einsiedeln Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in the town of Einsiedeln in the Canton of Schwyz, Switzerland. The abbey is dedicated to Our Lady of the Hermits, the title being derived from the circumstances of its foundation, from which the name Einsiedeln is also said to have originated...
and the convent in Fahr are a double monastery
Double monastery
A double monastery is an institution combining a separate monastery for monks and an abbey for nuns. Examples include Coldingham Monastery in Scotland, and Einsiedeln Abbey and Fahr Abbey in Switzerland, controlled by the abbot of Einsiedeln...
, controlled by the abbot
Abbot
The word abbot, meaning father, is a title given to the head of a monastery in various traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not actually the head of a monastery...
of Einsiedeln.
Geographical and administratively special situation
In fact, the monastery is situated in an exclave of the canton of Aargau within the municipalityMunicipalities of the canton of Zürich
There are 171 municipalities in the Canton of Zürich, Switzerland, .Municipalities are grouped in districts , their capital municipalities are written in bold letters.See also: Municipalities of Switzerland....
of Unterengstringen
Unterengstringen
Unterengstringen is a municipality in the district of Dietikon in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland, located in the Limmat Valley .- Geography :...
in the canton of Zürich
Canton of Zürich
The Canton of Zurich has a population of . The canton is located in the northeast of Switzerland and the city of Zurich is its capital. The official language is German, but people speak the local Swiss German dialect called Züritüütsch...
in the Limmat Valley
Limmat Valley
The Limmat Valley is a river valley and a region in the cantons of Zürich and Aargau in Switzerland.- Geography :Limmat is the name of a long river located in the cantons of Zürich and Aargau...
. The convent
Convent
A convent is either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community, particularly in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican Communion...
is not part of the municipality, although some administrative tasks are performed by the Würenlos authorities. Therefore, since January 2008 the monastic community has to pay taxes, and the nun
Nun
A nun is a woman who has taken vows committing her to live a spiritual life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
s are allowed to fulfill their political rights (votings etc.) in Würenlingen. The monastery has its own postal code, being 8109 Kloster Fahr.
History
The nunnery is first mentioned in 1130 AD as Vare (being an old term used for "ferry") and was given by the Lords of Regensberg. On January 22, 1130 Lütold II of Regensberg and his wife Judenta handed over lands and estates on the shore of the LimmatLimmat
The Limmat is a river in Switzerland. It is the continuation of the Linth river, known as Limmat from the point of effluence from Lake Zurich, in the city of Zurich. From Zurich it flows in a northwesterly direction, after 35 km reaching the river Aare...
river around Weiningen
Weiningen
Weiningen is a municipality in the district of Dietikon in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland, located in the Limmat Valley .-Geography:...
and Unterengstringen
Unterengstringen
Unterengstringen is a municipality in the district of Dietikon in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland, located in the Limmat Valley .- Geography :...
-Oberengstringen
Oberengstringen
Oberengstringen is a municipality in the district of Dietikon in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland, located in the Limmat Valley .-History:...
to the Einsiedeln Abbey
Einsiedeln Abbey
Einsiedeln Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in the town of Einsiedeln in the Canton of Schwyz, Switzerland. The abbey is dedicated to Our Lady of the Hermits, the title being derived from the circumstances of its foundation, from which the name Einsiedeln is also said to have originated...
to establish a Benedictine
Order of Saint Benedict
The Order of Saint Benedict is a Roman Catholic religious order of independent monastic communities that observe the Rule of St. Benedict. Within the order, each individual community maintains its own autonomy, while the organization as a whole exists to represent their mutual interests...
nunnery. The bailiwick
Bailiwick
A bailiwick is usually the area of jurisdiction of a bailiff, and may also apply to a territory in which the sheriff's functions were exercised by a privately appointed bailiff under a royal or imperial writ. The word is now more generally used in a metaphorical sense, to indicate a sphere of...
rights were hold by the Regensberg family, since 1306 by the citizens of the city of Zürich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
, and from 1434 to 1798 by the Meyer von Knonau family.
In addition to the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
St. Nikolaus-Kapelle (Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas , also called Nikolaos of Myra, was a historic 4th-century saint and Greek Bishop of Myra . Because of the many miracles attributed to his intercession, he is also known as Nikolaos the Wonderworker...
chapel, built around 10th century AD, now St. Anna Kapelle) and the late medieval Parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
of the monastery, the Parish church of Weiningen was subordinated to the monastery. Around 1530, the monastery was abolished during the Reformation in Switzerland
Reformation in Switzerland
The Protestant Reformation in Switzerland was promoted initially by Huldrych Zwingli, who gained the support of the magistrate and population of Zürich in the 1520s. It led to significant changes in civil life and state matters in Zürich and spread to several other cantons of the Old Swiss...
, but in 1576 it was reopened.
Economical success around 1600 led to brisk construction activity: In 1678 the tavern
Tavern
A tavern is a place of business where people gather to drink alcoholic beverages and be served food, and in some cases, where travelers receive lodging....
Zu den zwei Raben ("Two Ravens", being the sign of the Einsiedeln Abbey) was built, from 1685 to 1696 the convent building and the church tower were reneved, in 1703/04 the refectory
Refectory
A refectory is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries...
was built by Johann Moosbrugger, and the provost
Provost (religion)
A provost is a senior official in a number of Christian churches.-Historical Development:The word praepositus was originally applied to any ecclesiastical ruler or dignitary...
building was erected in 1730/34. From 1743 to 1746 the monastery's church was painted with frescoes inside the building and on its walls by the Torricelli brothers.
In breaking down the old Grafschaft
County
A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain modern nations. Historically in mainland Europe, the original French term, comté, and its equivalents in other languages denoted a jurisdiction under the sovereignty of a count A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain...
Baden in 1803, the cantons of Zurich and Aargau established an exclave of Aargau within the canton of Zürich, being the former lands of the Fahr Abbey. The interventions of the canton of Aargau culminated in 1841 to close all monasteries within in the canton of Aargau, but it was reversed in 1843 for women's monasteries. The negotiations between Einsiedeln Abbey and the canton of Aargau on assets and influence were completed nearly 90 years later, in 1932: Aargau granted the independent authority of the monastic community. On February 1, 1944, the monastery established a Bäuerinnenschule, i.e. a peasant
Peasant
A peasant is an agricultural worker who generally tend to be poor and homeless-Etymology:The word is derived from 15th century French païsant meaning one from the pays, or countryside, ultimately from the Latin pagus, or outlying administrative district.- Position in society :Peasants typically...
school for women.
During World War II, from November 1943 to February 1944, 11 female Jewish refugees lived anonymous in the convent; they had to leave for unknown destination when the peasant school was opened.
On January 1, 2008, the monastery was assigned to the municipality of Würenlos. 117 years ago, Würenlos attempted for the first time to integrate the 1.48-hectare area of the monastery.
Martin Werlen, the Abbot of Einsiedeln, presented on January 22, 2009, a new convent seal, i.e. the Benedictine nuns are now even mistresses on the business of their monastery.
Convent, activities and points of interest
Being formerly part of the Bishopric of ConstanceBishopric of Constance
The Bishopric of Constance was a diocese of the Roman Catholic Church and ecclesiastical state of the Holy Roman Empire that existed from about 585 until 1821. Its seat was Konstanz at the western end of Lake Constance in the south-west corner of Germany...
, the monastery has been part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Basel since 1828. The nunnery is dedicated to Saint Mary.
Since the very beginning, the nunnery has been controlled by the abbot
Abbot
The word abbot, meaning father, is a title given to the head of a monastery in various traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not actually the head of a monastery...
of Einsiedeln; the monastery is administered by a female prior
Prior
Prior is an ecclesiastical title, derived from the Latin adjective for 'earlier, first', with several notable uses.-Monastic superiors:A Prior is a monastic superior, usually lower in rank than an Abbot. In the Rule of St...
who is a member of the convent
Convent
A convent is either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community, particularly in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican Communion...
in Fahr.
As of April 2010, 26 sisters (7 in 1873, 33 in 2000) are living in the monastery. The convent is administered by a (female) prior
Prior
Prior is an ecclesiastical title, derived from the Latin adjective for 'earlier, first', with several notable uses.-Monastic superiors:A Prior is a monastic superior, usually lower in rank than an Abbot. In the Rule of St...
. Silja Walter
Silja Walter
Silja Walter was a Swiss author and Benedictine nun in the Fahr Abbey in Switzerland. Born as Cécile Walter in Rickenbach, Solothurn, in Switzerland, at the age of 30 she became a nun: her religious name was Maria Hedwig . Her brother, Otto F...
(1919 - 2011), a renowned novelist, was the most prominent nun of the convent.
The nunnery is renowned for its agricultural school for women (Bäuerinnenschule) and the wine estate managed by the nuns, their students and around 30 external employees.
Products made by the monastery are liquors and honey, and a variety of other agricultural products among them fruits, vegetables, herbs, etc. The monastic community sells its products in a shop (from Monday to Saturday) situated in the monastery and provides a restaurant (from Wednesday to Sunday) in the former pilgrim
Pilgrim
A pilgrim is a traveler who is on a journey to a holy place. Typically, this is a physical journeying to some place of special significance to the adherent of a particular religious belief system...
's hostel, built in 1678 AD. The 10th century AD St Anna chapel is also popular for weddings.
For tourists Fahr Abbey is a highlight in the Limmat Valley and a popular stop for hikers and bikers along the Limmat river. Fahr Abbey is listed as a Swiss heritage sites of national significance
Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance
The Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance is a register of some 8,300 items of cultural property in Switzerland...
.
Literature
- Hélène Arnet: Das Kloster Fahr im Mittelalter. Zürich 1995, ISBN 3-85865-511-2
- Silja Walter: Der Ruf aus dem Garten, Paulus-Verlag, Fribourg 1995, ISBN 3-7228-0370-5
- Silja Walter: Das Kloster am Rande der Stadt. Verlag die Arche, Zürich 1980, ISBN 3-7160-1685-3