List of Imperial abbeys
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Imperial abbeys (German: Reichsabteien, also Reichsklöster and Reichsstifte) were religious houses within the Holy Roman Empire which for some period during their existence had the status of Reichsunmittelbarkeit ("imperial immediacy"): that is, such houses were answerable directly to the Emperor and were thus sovereign territories (however small), independent of other lordships. This status brought with it numerous other political and financial advantages, such as immunity from the authority of the local bishop, rights to demand various taxes and duties and to levy justice.
The head of an Imperial abbey was generally an Imperial abbot (Reichsabt) or Imperial abbess (Reichsäbtissin). (The head of a Reichspropstei - an Imperial provostry or priory - was generally a Reichspropst). Some of the greatest establishments had the rank of ecclesiastical principalities, and were headed by a Prince-Abbot or a Prince-Provost (Fürstabt, Fürstpropst), with status comparable to that of Prince-Bishops. Most however (and many of these religious houses had only very small territories) were Imperial prelates (Reichsprelaten) and as such participated in a single collective vote in the Reichstag as members of the Bench of Prelates, later divided into the Swabian College of Imperial Prelates and the Rhenish College of Imperial Prelates.
It was not uncommon for heads of religious houses other than the Imperial abbeys to have similar titles even though their establishments did not have Reichsunmittelbarkeit. To take three examples, the Prince-Bishop of St. Gall retained his title until the abbey was secularised in 1798, even though it had ceased to be an Imperial abbey in 1648; the abbot of Muri (which had a strong Habsburg connection) was created an Imperial prince in 1710, although by that time Muri was in Switzerland; and the Prince-Abbot of St. Blaise's Abbey in Baden-Württemberg held that title, not on account of the status of the abbey, which was not reichsunmmittelbar, but because it was conferred on him by the abbey's ownership of the County of Bonndorf.
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[edit] List of Imperial abbeys
This list includes the Principalities, Imperial abbeys (Reichsabteien and -klöster), Imperial colleges (Reichsstifte), Imperial provostries or priories (Reichspropsteien) and the single Imperial charterhouse (Reichskartause). The word "Stift", meaning a collegiate foundation or canonry, possibly belonging to a variety of different orders or to none at all, and either with or without rules and vows, for either men ("Herrenstift") or for women ("Frauenstift"), has been left untranslated, except when it specifically refers to the chapter of a church.
Some of the imperial abbeys were dissolved during the Reformation; others were absorbed into other territories at various times in the general course of political life. Those in Alsace and Switzerland passed out of the Empire in 1648, when Alsace was ceded to France and Switzerland became independent. The great majority of these religious bodies however were secularised during the brief period that included the French Revolution, the Napoleonic Wars and their aftermath, especially as a result of the Reichsdeputationshauptschluss of February 1803. Any that survived, lost their Imperial titles when the Holy Roman Empire was wound up in 1806.
The abbreviations SC and RC stand for Swabian College and Rhenish College; the abbreviation RA stands for Reichsabtei (Imperial abbey), RP for Reichspropstei (Imperial provostry) and RF for Reichsfürstentum (Imperial Principality). In the "Dates" column, the abbreviation RU stands for: Reichsunmittelbarkeit granted. If no date is specified for the end of Reichsunmittelbarkeit, it is the same as the date of secularisation or mediatisation.
The following list is intended to be complete:
| Religious house | Location | Dates | Description and Imperial status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baindt Abbey | Baden-Württemberg | RU 1376; secularised 1802 | Cistercian nunnery. [1]RA. SC |
| Beckenried Abbey: unidentified[2] | Switzerland | ceased to be part of the HRE in 1648 | RA |
| Berchtesgaden Provostry | Bavaria | secularised 1803 | Fürstpropstei ("Prince-Provostry"). RU from 1194. RF from 1380 or 1559 |
| Blankenburg Abbey: unidentified[3] | nk[4] | nk | nk |
| Brunnen Abbey: unidentified[5] | Landstrass, Carinthia (Austria) | nk | nk |
| Buchau Abbey | Baden-Württemberg | RU 1347; secularised 1803[6] | Frauenstift. RA. RF. RC |
| Burtscheid Abbey | Aachen | RU 1220/21; secularised 1802 | Cistercian nunnery. RF. RC |
| Buxheim Priory | Bavaria | RU 1548; secularised 1802/03 | Benedictines; Carthusians from 1402; the only Reichskartause. RP. SC and RC |
| Comburg | Schwäbisch Hall, Baden-Württemberg | mediatised by Württemberg 1587 (secularised 1803) | Benedictine monastery, later Herrenstift. RA |
| Corvey Abbey | Höxter, North Rhine-Westphalia | RU c. 1150; secularised 1803 | Benedictine monastery. RA; RF no later than 1582[7] |
| Disentis Abbey | Switzerland | ceased to be part of the HRE in 1648 (secularised 1798; re-established 1803) | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Echternach Abbey | Luxembourg | mediatised by Burgundy (as part of Austria) | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Einsiedeln Abbey | Switzerland | RU 965; ceased to be part of the HRE in 1648 (secularised 1798; re-established 1803) | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Elchingen Abbey | Bavaria | secularised 1802 | Benedictine monastery. RA. SC |
| Ellwangen Abbey | Baden-Württemberg | RU 1011 (probably); secularised 1802 | Benedictine monastery; Fürstpropstei ("Prince-Provostry"). RF |
| Essen Abbey | Essen | secularised 1803 | Frauenstift. RA. RC |
| Frauenchiemsee Abbey | Bavaria | secularised 1803 | Benedictine nunnery. RA |
| Fraumünster Abbey | Zürich, Switzerland | secularised 1524 | Benedictine nunnery. RA |
| Fürstenfeld Abbey | Fürstenfeldbruck, Bavaria | secularised 1803 | Cistercian monastery. RA |
| Fulda Abbey | Hesse | secularised 1802 | Benedictine monastery. RF[8] |
| Gandersheim Abbey | Lower Saxony | secularised 1810 [9] | Frauenstift. RA. RC |
| Gengenbach Abbey | Baden-Württemberg | secularised 1803 | Benedictine monastery. RA. SC |
| Gernrode Abbey | Saxony-Anhalt | secularised 1610 | Frauenstift. RA. RC |
| Göss Abbey | Leoben, Austria | secularised 1782 | Benedictine nunnery. RA |
| Gutenzell Abbey | Baden-Württemberg | secularised 1803 | Cistercian nunnery. RA. SC |
| Heggbach Abbey | Maselheim, Baden-Württemberg | secularised 1803 | Cistercian nunnery. RA. SC |
| Helmarshausen Abbey | Bad Karlshafen, Hesse | secularised 1538 | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Herford Abbey | North Rhine-Westphalia | secularised 1802[10] | Frauenstift. RA. RC |
| Herrenalb Abbey | Baden-Württemberg | secularised 1536 | Cistercian monastery. RA |
| Hersfeld Abbey | Hesse | secularised 1606 | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Hynoltshusen Abbey: unidentified[11] | nk[12] | nk | monastery |
| Irsee Abbey | Bavaria | secularised 1802 | Benedictine nunnery. RA. SC |
| Kaisheim Abbey (sometimes Kaisersheim Abbey) | Bavaria | secularised 1802 | Cistercian monastery. RA. SC and RC |
| Kaufungen Abbey | Kassel, Hesse | secularised 1527[13] | Benedictine nunnery. RA |
| Kempten Abbey | Bavaria | secularised 1803 | Benedictine monastery; Fürststift from 1524. RA / RF |
| Kitzingen Abbey: unidentified[14] | nk | nk | monastery |
| Klingenmünster Abbey | Rhineland-Palatinate | secularised 1567 | Benedictine abbey, later provostry. RA / RP |
| Königsbronn Abbey | Heidenheim, Baden-Württemberg | secularised at some point by Württemberg, but date not clear[15] | Cistercian monastery. RA |
| Kornelimünster Abbey | Aachen | secularised 1802 | Benedictine monastery. RA[16]. RC |
| Kreuzlingen Abbey | Switzerland | RU by mid-12th century; ceased to be part of the HRE in 1648 | Augustinian Herrenstift. RA |
| Lindau Abbey | Bavaria | RU 1486; secularised 1802 | Frauenstift; RA.[17] |
| Lorsch Abbey | Darmstadt, Hesse | secularised 1556 | Premonstratensian priory. RA |
| Malmedy Abbey | Belgium | secularised 1794-95 | monastery. RA[18] |
| Marchtal Abbey | Baden-Württemberg | secularised 1803 | Premonstratensian monastery. RA. SC |
| Marmoutier Abbey; also Maursmünster[19] | Alsace | secularised 1790 | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Maulbronn Abbey | Baden-Württemberg | mediatised by Württemberg 1504 (secularised 1555) | Cistercian monastery. RA |
| Memleben Abbey | Saxony-Anhalt | secularised 1548 | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Michaelsberg Abbey (also known as Siegburg Abbey) | Siegburg, North Rhine-Westphalia | secularised 1803 | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Mondsee Abbey | Austria | secularised 1791 | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Münchenroth Abbey[20] | Bavaria | mediatised by Bavaria, date nk | RA |
| Münster im St. Gregoriental[21]: see Marmoutier | |||
| Murbach Abbey (incl Lüders) | Alsace | secularised 1789[22] | Benedictine monastery. RF |
| Muri Abbey | Switzerland | ceased to be part of the HRE in 1648 (secularised 1798; re-established 1803)[23] | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Neresheim Abbey | Baden-Württemberg | secularised 1802 [24] | Benedictine monastery. RA. SC |
| Niedermünster | Regensburg | secularised 1803 | Frauenstift. RA. RC |
| Nienburg Abbey | Bemburg, Saxony-Anhalt | secularised 1563 | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Nordhausen chapter | Thuringia | RU by 1220; secularised 1802 | Chapter of the "Dom" of Nordhausen. RA |
| Obermünster | Regensburg | secularised 1803 | Frauenstift. RA. RC |
| Oberschönenfeld Abbey | Bavaria | secularised 1803 | Cistercian nunnery. RA |
| Ochsenhausen Abbey | Baden-Württemberg | secularised 1803 | Benedictine monastery. RA. SC |
| Odenheim Abbey (later also Odenheim and Bruchsal) | Baden-Württemberg | secularised | Herrenstift. RA. RC |
| Ottobeuren Abbey | Bavaria | secularised 1802 | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Petershausen Abbey | Konstanz, Baden-Württemberg | secularised 1802 | Benedictine monastery. RA. SC |
| Pfäfers Abbey | Switzerland | ceased to be part of HRE in 1648 (secularised 1798; re-established 1803) | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Prüfening Abbey | Regensburg | secularised 1803 | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Prüm Abbey | Rhineland-Palatinate | secularised 1794 | Benedictine monastery. RF[25] |
| Quedlinburg Abbey | Saxony-Anhalt | secularised 1803 | Benedictine nunnery[26]. RA. RC |
| Recklinghausen Abbey (also Rechenhausen) | North Rhine-Westphalia | mediatised by Essen Abbey, date nk | RA |
| Reichenau Abbey | Baden-Württemberg | Reichsunmittelbarkeit given up to Bishopric of Konstanz 1548 | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Riddagshausen Abbey | Brunswick | mediatised 1569 by Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (secularised 1809) | Cistercian monastery. RA |
| Rockenhausen: unidentified[27] | nk[28] | nk | RA |
| Roggenburg Abbey | Bavaria | secularised 1802 | Premonstratensian monastery. RA. SC |
| Rot an der Rot Abbey, also Roth Abbey and Mönch(en)roth Abbey | Bavaria | secularised 1803 | Premonstratensian monastery. RA. SC |
| Rottenmünster Abbey | Rottweil | secularised 1803 | Cistercian nunnery. RA. SC |
| Saalfeld Abbey | Saalfeld/Saale, Thuringia | secularised 1526 | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| St. Bartholomäus cathedral chapter | Frankfurt am Main | secularised 1803 | Chapter of the Kaiserdom in Frankfurt. RP |
| St Blaise's Abbey (the abbey itself was not reichsunmittelbar)[29] | Baden-Württemberg | mediatised by Austria in the 15th century; secularised 1806 | Benedictine monastery. RF on account of the County of Bonndorf |
| St. Giles' Abbey, Nuremberg | Bavaria | absorbed by Nuremberg (city) in 1567, as unable to document Reichsunmittelbarkeit | RA |
| St. Emmeram's Abbey | Regensburg | secularised 1803 | Benedictine monastery. RA. RC |
| St. Gall's Abbey | Switzerland | secularised temporarily 1527-32; ceased to be part of the HRE in 1648 (finally secularised in 1798; not re-established) | Benedictine monastery; later Fürstabtei. RA / RF |
| St. George's Abbey, Isny | Isny im Allgäu | RU 1781; secularised 1802 | Benedictine monastery. RA. SC |
| St. Johann (St. John's Abbey): unidentified[30] | nk | nk | nk |
| St. Johann im Turital: unidentified[31] | Switzerland | ceased to be part of the HRE in 1648 | RA |
| St. Ludger's Abbey | Helmstedt | secularised 1802 | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| St. Maximin's Abbey, Trier | Trier | mediatised in C16th by Kurpfalz, but status not finalised until 1669, when Reichsunmittelbarkeit definitely given up to Elector of Trier | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| St. Peter's Abbey in the Black Forest | Baden-Württemberg | mediatised by Austria, date nk (secularised 1806) | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| St. Ulrich's and St. Afra's Abbey, Augsburg | Augsburg | RU 1643/44; secularised 1802 [32] | Benedictine monastery. RA. RC |
| Salem Abbey aka Salmansweiler | Baden-Württemberg | RU 1138x1152; secularised 1803 | Cistercian monastery. RA. SC |
| Schaffhausen Abbey | Switzerland | RU 1190; mediatised by Schaffhausen (town), date nk; ceased to be part of HRE in 1648 | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Schänis Abbey | Switzerland | secularised temporarily 1529-31; ceased to be part of the HRE in 1648 (finally secularised in 1811) | Frauenstift. RA |
| Schussenried Abbey | Baden-Württemberg | RU 1440; secularised 1803 | Premonstratensian monastery. RA. SC |
| Schuttern Abbey[33] | Baden-Württemberg | secularised 1803 | Benedictine monastery. RA |
| Seltz Abbey | Alsace, formerly Baden | mediatised by Kurpfalz during the Reformation (secularised 1803) | Benedictine nunnery. RA |
| Söflingen Abbey | Ulm, Baden-Württemberg | secularised 1802 or 1803 [34] | Poor Clares. RA. SC |
| Stablo or Stavelot Abbey (also Stablingen) | Belgium | secularised 1794-95 | RF[35] |
| Stein am Rhein Abbey | Switzerland | ceased to be part of the HRE in 1648 | RA |
| Thorn Abbey | Limburg, the Netherlands | secularised 1794 | Frauenstift. RA. RC |
| Ursberg Abbey[36] | Bavaria | secularised 1803 | Premonstratensian monastery. RA. SC |
| Waldsassen Abbey | Bavaria | mediatised by Kurpfalz 1543 | Cistercian monastery. RA |
| Walkenried Abbey | Thuringia | secularised 1648 | Cistercian monastery. RA |
| Weingarten Abbey | Baden-Württemberg | secularised 1803 | Benedictine monastery. RA. SC |
| Weissenau Abbey | Ravensburg, Baden-Württemberg | secularised 1802 | Premonstratensian monastery. RA. SC |
| Weissenburg Abbey | Alsace (France) | ceased to be part of the HRE in 1648 (secularised c. 1798) | Reichspropstei. RP / RF[37] |
| Werden Abbey | Essen | secularised 1803 | Benedictine monastery. RA. RC |
| Wettenhausen Abbey | Bavaria | secularised 1802 | Austin Canons. RA. SC |
| Zwiefalten Abbey | Baden-Württemberg | secularised 1802 | Benedictine monastery. RA. SC |
[edit] Notes
- ^ reichsunmittelbar but remained subordinate to Salem Abbey
- ^ mentioned in the 1521 Matrikel; there is no trace of a religious house at any time located in the village of Beckenried
- ^ mentioned in the 1521 Matrikel
- ^ attributed either to Blankenberg in Lorraine or to a place "Blankenburg" near Oldenburg
- ^ mentioned in the 1521 Matrikel
- ^ in 1792 the "Gefürstete Äbtissin zu Buchau" was listed among the Swabian Counts, not Prelates
- ^ The abbots became the Bishops of Corvey; the territory was later part of the Prince-Bishopric of Paderborn
- ^ from 1752 the abbots became the Prince-Bishops of Fulda
- ^ The abbey asserted Reichsunmittelbarkeit but owned no reichsunmittelbar estates, and was claimed till 1709 by Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel
- ^ or possibly 1810
- ^ mentioned in 1521 Matrikel
- ^ Honnecourt near Cambrai has been suggested
- ^ given to the Hessische Ritterschaft 1532; still extant as a private foundation
- ^ mentioned in 1521 Matrikel
- ^ became Protestant in 1553 and again in 1648
- ^ possibly later a Reichsfürstabtei
- ^ possibly later a Reichsfürstabtei
- ^ One principality with Stablo Abbey
- ^ Apparently the same as "Münster im St Georgental" ("St. Grigoriental"), Matrikel of 1521
- ^ No confirmation available
- ^ mentioned in 1521 Matrikel
- ^ effectively French since 1648, but anomalously remained legally part of the HRE
- ^ The abbot of Muri was created a Reichsfürst in 1701
- ^ The abbey's status was the subject of litigation with Öttingen until after 1760)
- ^ status later assumed by the Archbishop of Trier
- ^ became Evangelical in 1540
- ^ mentioned in 1521 Matrikel
- ^ a location near Kaiserslautern has been suggested
- ^ the Prince-Abbot of St. Blaise's had princely status not because of the abbey itself but because the abbey had acquired the County of Bonndorf, which carried princely status with it from 1609
- ^ mentioned in 1521 Matrikel
- ^ mentioned in 1521 Matrikel
- ^ The abbey was in conflict over its status with the Bishop of Augsburg until 1643/44
- ^ not to be confused with Schottern Abbey in Austria, secularised in the 15th century
- ^ The abbey's status has been questioned
- ^ One principality with Malmedy Abbey
- ^ not to be confused with Urspring Abbey
- ^ status later assumed by Bishop of Speyer
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- (German) 1521 Reichsmatrikel
[edit] References
- The above is partly based on the equivalent article on the German Wikipedia
In German:
- Georg Matthäi: Die Klosterpolitik Kaiser Heinrichs II. Ein Beitrag zur *Geschichte der Reichsabteien, Grünberg i.Schl. 1877
- Max Brennich: Die Besetzung der Reichsabteien in den Jahren 1138 - 1209, Greifswald 1908
- Johannes Polzin: Die Abtswahlen in den Reichsabteien von 1024 - 1056, 1908
- Heinrich Riese: Die Besetzung der Reichsabteien in den Jahren 1056 - 1137, 1911
- Hans Feierabend: Die politische Stellung der deutschen Reichsabteien während des Investiturstreites, Breslau 1913; Aalen 1971
- Hans-Peter Wehlt: Reichsabtei und König, 1970
- Thomas Vogtherr: Die Reichsabteien der Benediktiner und das Königtum im hohen Mittelalter (900–1125) (Mittelalter-Forschungen - Band 5), 2000
