Stamps of Germany (Berlin) 1979, MiNr 613

Altenberg Abbey (''Abtei Altenberg'') ( la, Vetus Mons) is a former

Cistercian The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint ...

monastery in Altenberg, now a part of the municipality of

Odenthal Odenthal is a municipality in the Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Odenthal is situated approximately 5 km north of Bergisch Gladbach and 15 km north-east of Cologne. Neighbouring places Nearby ...

in the

Bergisches Land The Bergisches Land (, ''Berg Country'') is a low mountain range region within the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, east of Rhine river, south of the Ruhr. The landscape is shaped by woods, meadows, rivers and creeks and contains over ...

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a States of Germany, state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more tha ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

History

The abbey was founded in 1133 as a daughter house of

Morimond Abbey Morimond Abbey is a religious complex in Parnoy-en-Bassigny, Haute-Marne department, in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France. It was the fourth of the four great daughter abbeys of Cîteaux Abbey, of primary importance in the spread of the Cis ...

and settled initially in the old castle of the

Counts of Berg Berg was a state—originally a county, later a duchy—in the Rhineland of Germany. Its capital was Düsseldorf. It existed as a distinct political entity from the early 12th to the 19th centuries. The name of the county lives on in the modern ...

, Burg Berge, which the counts had left for Schloss Burg, but moved to the new purpose-built monastery in the valley of the

Dhünn Dhünn is a -long river located in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Its main source is near Wipperfürth in the Bergisches Land area. It runs in a south-westerly direction, and its mouth into the river Wupper is near Leverkusen, appr. north of C ...

in 1153.Norbert Orthen: ''Unter dem Zeichen der Jakobsmuschel. Altenberg – eine Station auf dem Jakobusweg.''
online
) It flourished sufficiently to undertake the settlement of a number of daughter houses of its own:

Mariental Abbey Mariental Abbey (german: Kloster Mariental), in the present-day municipality of Mariental in Lower Saxony, Germany, is a former Cistercian monastery founded in 1138, now used and owned by a Lutheran congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church ...

and

Wągrowiec Abbey The Cistercian Abbey in Wągrowiec – is a former Cistercian abbey in Wągrowiec, Poland. Located in the voivodeship of Greater Poland in Wągrowiec County. The former monastery's church is named in honor of the Assumption of Mary and serves as ...

, both in 1143;

Ląd Abbey Ląd Abbey is a former Cistercian monastery in Ląd, Poland. It currently houses a seminary, the Higher Seminary of the Salesian Society, run by the Salesian order. On 1 July 2009, Ląd Abbey was designated an official Polish Historic Monument. ...

in 1146;

Zinna Abbey Zinna Abbey (german: Kloster Zinna) is a former Cistercian monastery, the site of which is now occupied by a village also called Kloster Zinna, today part of Jüterbog in Brandenburg, Germany, about south of Berlin. The village was established ...

in 1171; Haina Abbey in 1188; Jüterbog Abbey in 1282; and

Derneburg Abbey Holle is a village and a municipality in the district of Hildesheim, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approximately 15 km southeast of Hildesheim, and 15 km west of Salzgitter. It was mentioned in Tom Clancy's bestseller ''Red S ...

in 1443. In 1803 it was dissolved during the secularisation of Germany and fell into ruin. Starting in 1847 under King

Frederick William IV of Prussia Frederick William IV (german: Friedrich Wilhelm IV.; 15 October 17952 January 1861), the eldest son and successor of Frederick William III of Prussia, reigned as King of Prussia from 7 June 1840 to his death on 2 January 1861. Also referred to ...

, a thorough restoration was carried out, and the restored church, known as the ''

Altenberger Dom The Altenberger Dom (or Bergischer Dom) is the former abbey church of Altenberg Abbey which was built from 1259 in Gothic style by Cistercians. Listed as a cultural heritage, it is located in Altenberg, now part of Odenthal in the Rheinisch-Bergi ...

'' ("Altenberg Cathedral", although Altenberg was never the seat of a bishopric so this is not technically accurate), is currently an interdenominational church used by both

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

s and

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

Burials

William VII of Jülich, 1st Duke of Berg William II ( – 25 June 1408) was born in Jülich, as the son of Gerhard VI of Jülich, Count of Berg and Ravensberg, and Margaret, daughter and heiress of Otto IV, Count of Ravensberg, and Margaret of Berg.Walther Möller, ''Stammtafeln westd ...

Gerhard VI of Jülich, Count of Berg and Ravensberg Gerhard VI of Jülich, Count of Berg and Ravensberg ( – 18 May 1360) was the son of William V, Duke of Jülich and Joanna of Hainaut.Walther Möller, ''Stammtafeln westdeutscher Adelsgeschlechter im Mittelalter'' (Darmstadt, 1922, reprint Verlag ...

Margaret of Ravensberg Margaret of Ravensberg ( – 13 February 1389) was the daughter and heiress of Otto IV, Count of Ravensberg and Margaret of Berg-Windeck.Walther Möller, ''Stammtafeln westdeutscher Adelsgeschlechter im Mittelalter'' (Darmstadt, 1922, reprint Verlag ...

Adolf IV, Count of Berg Adolf IV of Berg count of Berg from 1132 until 1160 and of Altena (died after 1161), son of Adolf III of Berg count of Berg and Hövel. He married (1st) Adelheid von Arnsberg, a daughter of Heinrich count von Rietberg; then (2nd) Irmgard (?) von S ...

* Frederick II (Archbishop of Cologne) *

William IV, Duke of Jülich-Berg William IV of Jülich-Berg (9 January 1455 – 6 September 1511) was the last ruler of the Duchy of Jülich-Berg. Life William was the son of Gerhard VII, Duke of Jülich-Berg and Sophie of Saxe-Lauenburg. When his father died in 1475, Wi ...

* Sibylle of Brandenburg * Bruno III of Berg

Notes

References

* Breidenbach, Nicolaus J., 2006: ''Die Abtei Altenberg - Ihre Güter und Beziehungen zu Wermelskirchen'' in: ''Altenberger Blätter'', Nr. 35, Odenthal 2006 * Breidenbach, Nicolaus J., 2006: ''Die Schenkung des Hofes Steinhausen'' in: ''Altenberger Blätter'', Nr. 35, Odenthal 2006 * Ermert, H., 1924: ''Der ländliche Grundbesitz der Abtei Altenberg bis zum Ende des 15. Jahrhunderts.'' Dissertation. Bonn, 1924 * Mosler, Hans: ''Urkundenbuch der Abtei Altenberg.'' Vol. I, Düsseldorf, 1912; Vol. II, 1950 * Redlich, Paul 1901: ''Die letzten Zeiten der Abtei Altenberg'' in ''Annalen des Historischen Vereins für den Niederrhein'', 72. Jg, 1901, pp. 102–141
online

External links

Altenberg Abbey on Cistopedia – Encyclopædia Cisterciensis

Legends and tales

Die Brüder vom Berge oder die Gründung des Klosters

Die Neugründung des Klosters Altenberg

Die Rosen zu Altenberg

Der Wasserteufel bei Altenberg

Die Nachtigallen im Kloster zu Altenberg

Der Ave-Marien-Ritter zu Altenberg
{{Authority control Cistercian monasteries in Germany Monasteries in North Rhine-Westphalia Christian monasteries established in the 12th century 1130s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1133 establishments in Europe 1130s establishments in Germany Imperial abbeys disestablished in 1802–03 Odenthal Churches in North Rhine-Westphalia Buildings and structures in Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis