Øm Abbey
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Øm Abbey was founded in 1172 by a group of Cistercian monks in Århus Diocese near the town of Rye in central Jutland.
[edit] History
According to the abbey chronicle, Øm Abbey was founded in 1172 by Cistercian monks from Vitskøl Abbey in northern Jutland. They wanted to found a daughter house in central Jutland. They attempted to establish such a house at Sabro near Århus but failed to make it work. They moved to Sminge near Silkeborg, and then beginning in 1166 they spent three years at Veng, outside Skanderborg,leaving because of disagreements with local residents. They tried for four years to establish themselves at Kalvø in Lake Skanderborg, but the winters proved to be too harsh. The monks finally settled on a patch of land near the town of Rye between Moss Lake and Guden Lake surrounded by water and marsh. The site was overgrown with brush and surrounded by forest.
The abbey was dedicated to the Virgin Mary and was called 'Cara Insula' or the "dear Island"
At its height in the late 1400's, the abbey consisted of the church, hospital and hosptial cemetery, library, chapter house, refectory, dormitory, cloister and cloister garden, and a guest house. The abbey measured approximately 120 meters by 80 meters. It was one of Denmark's richest houses with land holdings, mills, and a well-recognized hospital.Cistercians were excellent farmers and over time the abbey came into possession of many properties which brought addtional income and prestige.
The Øm Abbey Chronicle was written by local monks from 1206-1267 when it abruptly ends. It outlines events at the abbey druing the tumultuous years of the early 1200's.
Bishop Svend of Århus trasferred many of his own holdings to Øm Abbey and then retired there to live out his days among the monks. He was buried in front of the high altar. Abbot Michael, the twelfth abbot, was buried in the chapter room in the unfinished church. Bishop Peder Elafssen of Århus was buried in the church in 1246 years before it was completed. Abbot Jens (1246-1249) was wounded while trying to prevent bandits from stealing horses from the abbey.
The second abbey church was completed in 1257 built of over-sized red bricks, the most common building material of the day. It was built in late Gothic style, but had an irregular shape. It had a central east-west running nave a transept. [1]
One event which caused trouble for Øm Abbey was the suspicion that the monks harbored Abbot Arnfast of Ryd Abbey who was accused of poisoning King Christopher I of Denmark by giving him poisoned communion wine during mass at Ribe Cathedral in 1259. Abbot Arnfast was supposed to have poisoned the king for his persecution of Archbishop Jacob Erlendsen. A thorough search failed to produce Arnfast who fled the country, but any regard King Erik Klipping had for Cistercians vanished. In 1260 Dowager Queen Margrethe Springhæst, the mother of King Erik, stayed at the abbey for two days with an army of 1600 knights. The chronicle bemoans on the heavy cost of such a royal visit.
The next two Bishops of Arhus were not kindly disposed to Øm Abbey. They reclaimed some of the properties that earlier bishops had given to the abbey. They also claimed the right of hospitality at the abbey for themselves and their followers which angered the monks. The Cistercians continued to support Archbishop Jacob Erlandsen in his struggle with King Valdemar. The chronicle ends abruptly in 1267 and was not added to by subsequent writers.
One of the important improvement the monks made to the site was to build three canals. Brother Martin discovered that Moss Lake was about a 'cubit' higher than Lake Guden. The monks used that difference to build two canals near the abbey one to bring fresh water to the abbey and a second to serve as a primitive sewerage system. The third canal built farther away from the the abbey connected the two lakes and was used to transport goods through the lake region.
The abbey prospered especially during and after the reign of Queen Margaret I. By 1510 the abbey owned 250 proeprties all over central Jutland.
The Reformation in Denmark brought about the end of the abbey. When Denmark became offcially Lutheran in 1536, the abbey was allowed to continue operating with the monks who worked there, but no new monks were to be admitted. In 1560 the last monk was moved to Sorø Abbey on Zealand, and the land and buildings becaem crown property under Frederik II. Just a year later, in 1561, Frederik II ordered the buildings torn down, and the stone, timber, and bricks used to expand Skanderborg Castle. The land on which the abbey had been located was divided into four large estates in 1571. The town of Emborg grew on the site of the abbey and now surrounds the site of the abbey which has become part of the the National Historic Museum system of Denmark.
[edit] References
Øm Abbey Chronicle
'Dansk Fortidsminde:Øm Kloster' Danmarks Kulturarvs Forening
