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Weingarten (Württemberg)
Encyclopedia
Württemberg
Württemberg , formerly known as Wirtemberg or Wurtemberg, is an area and a former state in southwestern Germany, including parts of the regions Swabia and Franconia....
, in the District of Ravensburg
Ravensburg (district)
Ravensburg is a district in the south-east of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Neighboring districts are Bodensee, Sigmaringen and Biberach, the Bavarian urban district Memmingen and the districts Unterallgäu, Oberallgäu and Lindau.-History:The district dates back to the Oberamt Ravensburg, which was...
, in the valley of the Schussen River. Together with the southern neighbour cities of Ravensburg
Ravensburg
Ravensburg is a town in Upper Swabia in Southern Germany, capital of the district of Ravensburg, Baden-Württemberg.Ravensburg was first mentioned in 1088. In the Middle Ages, it was an Imperial Free City and an important trading centre...
and Friedrichshafen
Friedrichshafen
This article is about a German town. For the Danish town, see Frederikshavn, and for the Finnish town, see Fredrikshamn .Friedrichshafen is a university city on the northern side of Lake Constance in Southern Germany, near the borders with Switzerland and Austria.It is the district capital of the...
on Lake Constance (Bodensee), it forms one of 14 medium-sized infrastructural centres in 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...
. The town is seat of the University of Applied Sciences of Ravensburg-Weingarten (Hochschule Ravensburg-Weingarten) and of the Teachers' College of Weingarten (Pädagogische Hochschule Weingarten).
History
The town was formerly known as Altdorf and was renamed to Weingarten in 1865. Before that, Weingarten was the name of Weingarten AbbeyWeingarten Abbey
Weingarten Abbey or St. Martin's Abbey is a Benedictine monastery on the Martinsberg in Weingarten near Ravensburg in Baden-Württemberg .-First foundation:...
only, which lay on the Martinsberg (St. Martin
Martin of Tours
Martin of Tours was a Bishop of Tours whose shrine became a famous stopping-point for pilgrims on the road to Santiago de Compostela. Around his name much legendary material accrued, and he has become one of the most familiar and recognizable Christian saints...
's hill) above the town. The name "Altdorf" is derived from the Frankish alach for "church". So "Altdorf" does not mean "old village" but "village/thorp with the parish church".
Near the old town, an Alemannic burial place was excavated in 1954–1957, dating from the 5th century. In the 8th century the region became part of the Frankish empire
Franks
The Franks were a confederation of Germanic tribes first attested in the third century AD as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul. Only the Salian Franks formed a...
. Around the 9th century the Elder Welfs became count
Count
A count or countess is an aristocratic nobleman in European countries. The word count came into English from the French comte, itself from Latin comes—in its accusative comitem—meaning "companion", and later "companion of the emperor, delegate of the emperor". The adjective form of the word is...
s of the Schussengau and established their seat in Altdorf.
In 1056 Welf IV transferred the ancestral seat of the Welfs to the newly built castle of Ravensburg
Ravensburg
Ravensburg is a town in Upper Swabia in Southern Germany, capital of the district of Ravensburg, Baden-Württemberg.Ravensburg was first mentioned in 1088. In the Middle Ages, it was an Imperial Free City and an important trading centre...
. He founded a new Benedictine
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
abbey at the Martinsberg in Altdorf; this abbey was named Weingarten Abbey
Weingarten Abbey
Weingarten Abbey or St. Martin's Abbey is a Benedictine monastery on the Martinsberg in Weingarten near Ravensburg in Baden-Württemberg .-First foundation:...
.
By a contract of inheritance, in 1191 the Hohenstaufen
Hohenstaufen
The House of Hohenstaufen was a dynasty of German kings in the High Middle Ages, lasting from 1138 to 1254. Three of these kings were also crowned Holy Roman Emperor. In 1194 the Hohenstaufens also became Kings of Sicily...
Frederick Barbarossa acquired the ownership of the Schussengau (including Altdorf, Weingarten and Ravensburg) from Welf VI
Welf VI
Welf VI was the margrave of Tuscany and duke of Spoleto , the third son of Henry IX, Duke of Bavaria, and a member of the illustrious Italo-German family of the Welf....
, Duke of Spoleto and uncle of both Frederick Barbarossa and Henry the Lion
Henry the Lion
Henry the Lion was a member of the Welf dynasty and Duke of Saxony, as Henry III, from 1142, and Duke of Bavaria, as Henry XII, from 1156, which duchies he held until 1180....
.
About seventy years later, with the death of Conradin
Conradin
Conrad , called the Younger or the Boy, but usually known by the diminutive Conradin , was the Duke of Swabia , King of Jerusalem , and King of Sicily .-Early childhood:Conradin was born in Wolfstein, Bavaria, to Conrad...
in Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
in 1268, the line of the Hohenstaufen
Hohenstaufen
The House of Hohenstaufen was a dynasty of German kings in the High Middle Ages, lasting from 1138 to 1254. Three of these kings were also crowned Holy Roman Emperor. In 1194 the Hohenstaufens also became Kings of Sicily...
became extinct. Their former estates were confiscated as imperial property of the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
. While the small town of Altdorf was ruled by the Reichslandvogt
Vogt
A Vogt ; plural Vögte; Dutch voogd; Danish foged; ; ultimately from Latin [ad]vocatus) in the Holy Roman Empire was the German title of a reeve or advocate, an overlord exerting guardianship or military protection as well as secular justice...
(imperial steward
Steward (office)
A steward is an official who is appointed by the legal ruling monarch to represent him or her in a country, and may have a mandate to govern it in his or her name; in the latter case, it roughly corresponds with the position of governor or deputy...
) of Swabia
Swabia
Swabia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany.-Geography:Like many cultural regions of Europe, Swabia's borders are not clearly defined...
, the abbey of Weingarten won the status of an "Imperial Abbey" with privileges similar to those of an Imperial Free City.
The Vogts seat was first located at the castle of Ravensburg (most often called "Veitsburg" to distinguish it from the Imperial City of Ravensburg) until 1647 when Swedish troops destroyed the castle and the Vogt moved to a palace in Altdorf.
The abbey of Weingarten became one of the wealthiest monasteries in southern Germany, owning about 306 km² of rich estates, before it was confiscated during the secularization
Secularization
Secularization is the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular institutions...
following the Reichsdeputationshauptschluß bill in 1803. Weingarten was first allotted to the House of Nassau, Altdorf to the dukedom of Württemberg
Württemberg
Württemberg , formerly known as Wirtemberg or Wurtemberg, is an area and a former state in southwestern Germany, including parts of the regions Swabia and Franconia....
. In 1806 Weingarten, too, was incorporated into Württemberg.
Erwin Rommel
Erwin Johannes Eugen Rommel , popularly known as the Desert Fox , was a German Field Marshal of World War II. He won the respect of both his own troops and the enemies he fought....
was based in the town. As in neighbouring Ravensburg, a significant engineering industry evolved during the second half of the century.
In 1922, monks from Beuron Abbey
Beuron Archabbey
Beuron Archabbey is a major house of the Benedictine Order located at Beuron in the upper Danube valley in Baden-Württemberg in Germany....
(on the Danube) and Erdington Abbey
Erdington Abbey
Erdington Abbey Church on Sutton Road, Erdington, Birmingham, England, is the more usual name of the grade II listed church of Saints Thomas and Edmund of Canterbury. It is the church of a Roman Catholic parish in the Archdiocese of Birmingham served by the Redemptorists...
(in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
) founded a new Benedictine abbey that leased some of the former abbey rooms.
During Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
Weingarten was incorporated into Ravensburg; after the war, the rival cities were separated again.
Since 1949, most of the former abbey buildings have been occupied by a teachers' college. A smaller part of the main building is leased to the Catholic Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart
Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart
The Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in Germany. The diocese is located in the Württemberg part of the German State of Baden-Württemberg.-History:...
which runs the Catholic Academy for adult education there. New buildings were erected in the neighbourhood by the University of Applied Sciences of Ravensburg-Weingarten.
During the municipal reforms of the 1970s, a renewed attempt to fuse Ravensburg and Weingarten failed due to massive resistance on the part of Weingarten's citizenry.
Weingarten was the home of the NATO International Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol
Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol
Long Range Reconnaissance Patrols, or LRRPs , were special small four to six-man teams in the Vietnam War on highly dangerous special reconnaissance missions deep into enemy territory....
School through the 1980s and 90s until it moved to Pfullendorf
City partnerships
BlumenauBlumenau
Blumenau is a city in Vale do Itajaí, state of Santa Catarina, in southern Brazil. It was founded on September 2, 1850 by Dr. Hermann Bruno Otto Blumenau along with 17 German immigrants. A few years later Fritz Müller migrated to Blumenau as well....
, Santa Catarina
Santa Catarina (state)
Santa Catarina is a state in southern Brazil with one of the highest standards of living in Latin America. Its capital is Florianópolis, which mostly lies on the Santa Catarina Island. Neighbouring states are Rio Grande do Sul to the south and Paraná to the north. It is bounded on the east by...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
Brest
Brest, Belarus
Brest , formerly also Brest-on-the-Bug and Brest-Litovsk , is a city in Belarus at the border with Poland opposite the city of Terespol, where the Bug River and Mukhavets rivers meet...
, Brest Voblast
Brest Voblast
Brest Voblast or Brest Oblast is a province of Belarus with its administrative center being Brest.Important cities within the voblast' include: Baranovichi, Brest, and Pinsk.-Geography:...
, Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
Bron
Bron
Bron is a commune in the Rhône department in eastern France.It lies east of Lyon. It is the sixth-largest suburb of the city of Lyon, and is adjacent to its east side. It forms part of the Urban Community of Lyon.-History:...
, Rhône
Rhône (département)
Rhône is a French department located in the central Eastern region of Rhône-Alpes. It is named after the Rhône River.- History :The Rhône department was created on August 12, 1793 when the former département of Rhône-et-Loire was split into two departments: Rhône and Loire.Originally, the eastern...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Burgeis (Burgusio), a frazione
Frazione
A frazione , in Italy, is the name given in administrative law to a type of territorial subdivision of a comune; for other administrative divisions, see municipio, circoscrizione, quartiere...
of Mals
Mals
Mals is a comune in South Tyrol in the Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about 80 km northwest of Trento and about 70 km northwest of Bolzano, on the border with Switzerland and Austria.-Geography:...
(Malles Venosta), South Tyrol
South Tyrol
South Tyrol , also known by its Italian name Alto Adige, is an autonomous province in northern Italy. It is one of the two autonomous provinces that make up the autonomous region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. The province has an area of and a total population of more than 500,000 inhabitants...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Grimma
Grimma
Grimma is a town in the Free State of Saxony, Germany on the left bank of the Mulde, southeast of Leipzig. Founded in c. 1170, it is part of the Leipzig district.- Location :...
, Free State of Saxony, 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...
Mantua
Mantua
Mantua is a city and comune in Lombardy, Italy and capital of the province of the same name. Mantua's historic power and influence under the Gonzaga family, made it one of the main artistic, cultural and notably musical hubs of Northern Italy and the country as a whole...
(Màntova), Lombardy
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Places of interest
- The Abbey Church of St. Martin and Oswald, also known as Münster or Basilika, is the largest BaroqueBaroqueThe Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
church north of the Alps. It is approximately half as long as St. Peter's BasilicaSt. Peter's BasilicaThe Papal Basilica of Saint Peter , officially known in Italian as ' and commonly known as Saint Peter's Basilica, is a Late Renaissance church located within the Vatican City. Saint Peter's Basilica has the largest interior of any Christian church in the world...
in RomeRomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
and hence sometimes referred to as "Swabian St. Peter". The church features a baroque organ by Joseph Gabler with 4 manuals and nearly 7000 pipes, including a 49 rank pedal mixture "La Force" on the bottom pedal C. - The surrounding convent and other abbey buildings are also built in Baroque style.
- The Alemans Museum displays archaeologicalArchaeologyArchaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
finds from an Alemannic burial place of the early Middle AgesMiddle AgesThe 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...
. It is one the largest museums specializing in the history of the Alemans. - The "Schlössle" ("small palace") was erected around 1550 as the administrative seat of the Austrian bailiwick of Swabia. In the 18th century it was used as residence of the imperial judge, in the 19th and 20th century as a domicile of higher-ranking military officers. Since 2001 it is home to the municipal museum.
Fasnet
The local tradition of the SwabiaSwabia
Swabia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany.-Geography:Like many cultural regions of Europe, Swabia's borders are not clearly defined...
n-Alemannic
Alemannic German
Alemannic is a group of dialects of the Upper German branch of the Germanic language family. It is spoken by approximately ten million people in six countries: Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein, France and Italy...
carnival
Carnival
Carnaval is a festive season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during February. Carnaval typically involves a public celebration or parade combining some elements of a circus, mask and public street party...
called Fasnet
Fastnacht
The Swabian–Alemannic Fastnacht is the pre-Lenten carnival in Alemannic folklore in Switzerland, southern Germany, Alsace and western Austria....
can be traced back to 1348. At that time "town-hall dances" were reported, celebrating the end of a pest
Pest (animal)
A pest is an animal which is detrimental to humans or human concerns. It is a loosely defined term, often overlapping with the related terms vermin, weeds, parasites and pathogens...
epidemy.
Every year, the Fasnet season starts with the Gumpige Dunnschdig (Jumpy Thursday) a week before Ash Wednesday
Ash Wednesday
Ash Wednesday, in the calendar of Western Christianity, is the first day of Lent and occurs 46 days before Easter. It is a moveable fast, falling on a different date each year because it is dependent on the date of Easter...
. In the evening, the Hemedglonkerumzug (from "hemed" = nightgown in local dialect) takes place, so everybody runs through the streets in pyjamas or nightshirts. This custom symbolizes the awakening of carnival fools.
The main pageant takes place at Sunday. Typical carnival characters of Weingarten are the Plätzler (in a red and white costume, first depicted in 1868), the Lauratal ghosts and the Bockstallnarren ("buck stable fools"). In addition to these local groups, many other carnival groups from the region take part in the pageant.
"Blutritt" procession
Relic
In religion, a relic is a part of the body of a saint or a venerated person, or else another type of ancient religious object, carefully preserved for purposes of veneration or as a tangible memorial...
of the holy blood of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
Christ. During the rest of the year, the relic is on display in the Weingarten abbey church.