Engelszell Abbey (german: Stift Engelszell) is a

Trappist The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance ( la, Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a ...

monastery, the only one in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

. It is located near Engelhartszell an der Donau in the '' Innviertel'' in

Upper Austria Upper Austria (german: Oberösterreich ; bar, Obaöstareich) is one of the nine states or of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, an ...

History

Cistercians

The abbey was founded in 1293 by Bernhard of Prambach,

Bishop of Passau The Diocese of Passau is a Roman Catholic diocese in Germany that is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising.Cistercian monastery. It was settled in 1295 by monks from Wilhering Abbey, its mother house, and was of the filiation 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 Ci ...

. It suffered a considerable decline, both spiritual and financial, in the period of the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and ...

, and for a time passed into private ownership. From 1618 onwards the intervention and support of Wilhering Abbey gradually restored it. On

Easter Sunday Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the ''Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel P ...

1699, a disastrous fire plunged the abbey once again into financial difficulties and from 1720 its management was in the hands of administrators. In 1746, Leopold Reichl, the last and greatest of Engelszell's abbots of the Common Observance, was appointed, and soon rebuilt its finances. Between 1754 and 1764, Leopold rebuilt the present-day abbey church. In 1786, Engelszell was dissolved by

Emperor Joseph II Joseph II (German: Josef Benedikt Anton Michael Adam; English: ''Joseph Benedict Anthony Michael Adam''; 13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg lands from November 29, 1780 un ...

and the buildings were subsequently put to several secular uses, including as a factory and as a residence.

Trappists

In 1925, Engelszell was occupied and re-founded as a

monastery by refugee German monks expelled after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

from Oelenberg Abbey in Alsace. These monks had found temporary shelter in

Banz Abbey Banz Abbey (german: Kloster Banz), now known as Banz Castle (german: Schloss Banz), is a former Benedictine monastery, since 1978 a part of the town of Bad Staffelstein north of Bamberg, Bavaria, southern Germany. History The abbey was founde ...

but were looking for a permanent home. Initially established as a priory, in 1931 it was elevated to the rank of an abbey, and the former prior, Gregorius Eisvogel, appointed abbot, in which office he was dedicated by Johannes Maria Gföllner, Bishop of Linz, at a ceremony in Wilhering Abbey. On 2 December 1939, the abbey was confiscated by the

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one orga ...

and the community, numbering 73, evicted. Four monks were sent to Dachau Concentration Camp, while others were imprisoned elsewhere or drafted into the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

. At the end of the war in 1945, only about a third of the previous community returned. They were augmented, however, by the refugee German Trappists expelled from Mariastern Abbey, Banja Luka, Bosnia, under their abbot Bonaventura Diamant. Since 1995, the abbot has been Marianus Hauseder. As at 2012, the number of monks in the community was 7.

Buildings

Engelszell Abbey church, built between 1754 and 1764, is an impressive church in the

Rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...

style, with a tower 76 metres high. The interior contains notable works of art works by

Bartolomeo Altomonte Bartolomeo Altomonte, also known as Bartholomäus Hohenberg (24 February 1694, in Warsaw – 11 November 1783, in Sankt Florian), was an Austrian baroque painter who specialized in large scale frescoes. He was the son of Martino Altomonte, als ...

, Joseph Deutschmann and the stuccoist Johann Georg Üblhör. After structural damage in about 1957 the ceiling of the nave was repainted with a contemporary work by Fritz Fröhlich.

Gallery

File:SeDSC00172.JPG, Abbey Church steeple File:SeDSC00155.JPG, Abbey Church high altar File:SeDSC00156.JPG, Abbey Church high altarpiece File:SeDSC00144.JPG, Ceiling frescoes File:Stift Engelszell Orgel.jpg, Organ loft File:SeDSC00137.JPG, Saint Faustus reliquary File:SeDSC00160.JPG, Bronze relief File:SeDSC00175.JPG, Monastery chapel File:SeDSC00206.JPG, Library File:SeDSC00210.JPG, Library fresco

Economy

The monastery lives mostly from its agricultural produce. It has become known both for its liqueurs and for its beer. It currently produces 3 beers on its modern 15HL brewhouse. Nivard, a Belgian Pale Ale; Benno, a dopplebock and Gregorius, a Tripelbock made with local honey. While it was once also known for its cheese, ''Engelszeller Trappistenkäse'', this is no longer produced. In May 2012, the International Trappist Association approved Engelszell to be the 9th producer of

Trappist beer Trappist beer is brewed by Trappist monks. Thirteen Trappist monasteries—six in Belgium, two in the Netherlands, and one each in Austria, Italy, England, France, and Spain—currently produce beer, but the ''Authentic Trappist Product'' labe ...

, and, at the time, only the second outside Belgium.

List of superiors

* Gregorius Eisvogel, 1925–31, prior; 1931–50, abbot * Basile Sartorio, 1950–51, interim superior * Bonaventura Diamant, 1951–52, superior ''ad nutum'' * Benno Stumpf, 1952–53, superior ''ad nutum''; 1953–66, abbot * Willibald Knoll, 1966–83, abbot * Klaus Jansen, 1982–83, apostolic administrator; 1983–89, abbot * Nivard Volkmer, 1989–91, superior ''ad nutum'' * Marianus Hauseder, 1991–95, superior ''ad nutum''; from 1995, abbot

References

External links

*
Orden-Online.de: Stift Engelszell
{{Coord, 48.499, N, 13.734, E, display=title, source:dewiki Cistercian monasteries in Austria Monasteries in Upper Austria Trappist monasteries Christian monasteries established in the 13th century 20th-century Christian monasteries 1293 establishments in Europe 1786 disestablishments in Europe 1925 establishments in Austria Tourist attractions in Upper Austria 13th-century establishments in Austria Establishments in the Duchy of Austria 13th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Austria