Mosbach Abbey
Encyclopedia
Mosbach Abbey was a Benedictine monastery, later a monastery of Augustinian Canons, in the town of Mosbach
in the Odenwald
, Baden-Württemberg
, Germany
.
Christianisation of this part of Germany, a number of monasteries were set up, covering between them the whole region of the Odenwald: Amorbach
, Lorsch
and Fulda
, all founded in the 8th century, and Mosbach, the southernmost and least documented. It is first mentioned in a reference in the records of Reichenau Abbey in 825, but in the context of the other monastic foundations in the Odenwald, it seems likely that it was also founded in the previous century. The next record of it is in 976, when Emperor Otto II
granted it to Worms Cathedral
chapter as a private episcopal monastery. In about 1000, it was changed from a Benedictine house to one of canons regular
. In 1268 however the abbey regained its independence with the re-grant of the right to elect its own abbots.
In 1308 the present Saint Juliana
's church was built to replace the earlier abbey church. In 1556 in the course of the Reformation
the Elector Palatine Otto-Heinrich abolished Roman Catholic services and made the abbey church the town's Protestant parish church. The former Catholic parish church of Saint Cecilia
's was thus rendered superfluous and was demolished. Otto-Heinrich dissolved the abbey itself in 1564, of which virtually nothing remains except the church.
During the course of the 17th century the need for a Catholic church
re-emerged, however, and in 1708 Saint Juliana's was partitioned to allow both Protestants and Catholics to use the same building for
worship: the Protestants have the former nave and the Catholics the former chancel.
friary on a new site further out of the town centre. The friary was
dissolved in 1808 during the secularisation of Baden-Württemberg
, and the buildings were reused for administrative and local government purposes. The friary garden however has recently been re-developed as a herb garden, in connection with the local Herb Market.
Mosbach
Mosbach is the capital of the Neckar-Odenwald district in the north of Baden-Württemberg, Germany, about 58 km east of Heidelberg. Its geographical position is 49.21'N 9.9'E....
in the Odenwald
Odenwald
The Odenwald is a low mountain range in Hesse, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg in Germany.- Location :The Odenwald lies between the Upper Rhine Rift Valley with the Bergstraße and the Hessisches Ried in the west, the Main and the Bauland in the east, the Hanau-Seligenstadt Basin – a subbasin of...
, Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
, 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...
.
Mosbach Abbey
As part of the systematic CarolingianCarolingian
The Carolingian dynasty was a Frankish noble family with origins in the Arnulfing and Pippinid clans of the 7th century AD. The name "Carolingian", Medieval Latin karolingi, an altered form of an unattested Old High German *karling, kerling The Carolingian dynasty (known variously as the...
Christianisation of this part of Germany, a number of monasteries were set up, covering between them the whole region of the Odenwald: Amorbach
Amorbach Abbey
Amorbach Abbey was a Benedictine monastery located at Amorbach in the district of Miltenberg in Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany.- History :...
, Lorsch
Lorsch Abbey
The Abbey of Lorsch is a former Imperial Abbey in Lorsch, Germany, about 10 km east of Worms, one of the most renowned monasteries of the Carolingian Empire. Even in its ruined state, its remains are among the most important pre-Romanesque–Carolingian style buildings in Germany...
and Fulda
Fulda
Fulda is a city in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district .- Early Middle Ages :...
, all founded in the 8th century, and Mosbach, the southernmost and least documented. It is first mentioned in a reference in the records of Reichenau Abbey in 825, but in the context of the other monastic foundations in the Odenwald, it seems likely that it was also founded in the previous century. The next record of it is in 976, when Emperor Otto II
Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor
Otto II , called the Red, was the third ruler of the Saxon or Ottonian dynasty, the son of Otto the Great and Adelaide of Italy.-Early years and co-ruler with Otto I:...
granted it to Worms Cathedral
Worms Cathedral
Cathedral of St Peter is a church in Worms, southern Germany. It was the seat of the Catholic Prince-Bishopric of Worms until its extinction in 1800.It is a basilica with four round towers, two large domes, and a choir at each end...
chapter as a private episcopal monastery. In about 1000, it was changed from a Benedictine house to one of canons regular
Canons Regular
Canons Regular are members of certain bodies of Canons living in community under the Augustinian Rule , and sharing their property in common...
. In 1268 however the abbey regained its independence with the re-grant of the right to elect its own abbots.
In 1308 the present Saint Juliana
Saint Juliana
-People:* See Paul and Juliana for Saint Juliana ; she also lived with saint Tom martyred with her brother Paul in 270* Saint Juliana of Nicomedia * Saint Juliana of Liège , also known as St. Juliana of Mt. Cornillon...
's church was built to replace the earlier abbey church. In 1556 in the course of 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...
the Elector Palatine Otto-Heinrich abolished Roman Catholic services and made the abbey church the town's Protestant parish church. The former Catholic parish church of Saint Cecilia
Saint Cecilia
Saint Cecilia is the patroness of musicians and Church music because as she was dying she sang to God. It is also written that as the musicians played at her wedding she "sang in her heart to the Lord". St. Cecilia was an only child. Her feast day is celebrated in the Roman Catholic, Anglican,...
's was thus rendered superfluous and was demolished. Otto-Heinrich dissolved the abbey itself in 1564, of which virtually nothing remains except the church.
During the course of the 17th century the need for a Catholic church
re-emerged, however, and in 1708 Saint Juliana's was partitioned to allow both Protestants and Catholics to use the same building for
worship: the Protestants have the former nave and the Catholics the former chancel.
Mosbach Friary
In 1688 a community of Franciscans settled here and established afriary on a new site further out of the town centre. The friary was
dissolved in 1808 during the secularisation of Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
, and the buildings were reused for administrative and local government purposes. The friary garden however has recently been re-developed as a herb garden, in connection with the local Herb Market.