Grafschaft Abbey (german: Kloster Grafschaft) is a community of the Sisters of Mercy of

Saint Charles Borromeo Charles Borromeo ( it, Carlo Borromeo; la, Carolus Borromeus; 2 October 1538 – 3 November 1584) was the Archbishop of Milan from 1564 to 1584 and a cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was a leading figure of the Counter-Reformation combat a ...

, formerly a

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

monastery, in

Schmallenberg Schmallenberg ( Westphalian: ''Smalmereg'') is a town and a climatic health resort in the High Sauerland District, Germany. By area, it is the third biggest of all cities and towns of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the second biggest o ...

Grafschaft A ''Grafschaft'' was originally the name given to the administrative area in the Holy Roman Empire over which a count, or ''Graf'', presided as judge. It is often, therefore, translated as 'county'. The term has survived as a placename in German- ...

in the Sauerland, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

First foundation

The Benedictine monastery was founded in 1072 on a site at the foot of the Wilzenberg mountain, by Saint Anno,

Archbishop of Cologne The Archbishop of Cologne is an archbishop governing the Archdiocese of Cologne of the Catholic Church in western North Rhine-Westphalia and is also a historical state in the Rhine holding the birthplace of Beethoven and northern Rhineland-Palati ...

, whose statue still stands at the west gate. The monastery was dedicated between 1079 and 1089. The original buildings burned down in 1270. From 1729 the premises were gradually replaced by completely new buildings in the

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

style; the rebuild was finished in 1742 and the new abbey church dedicated in 1747. The abbey was dissolved in 1804 as a consequence of secularisation. In 1827 the premises were bought by the Princes von Fürstenberg, but by that time the church was in such a bad condition that it had to be demolished, despite its high architectural quality.

Second foundation

In 1947 the buildings were given to the

Sisters of Mercy of St. Borromeo The title Sisters of Mercy of St. Borromeo refers to a number of female Catholic religious congregations sharing one rule and tradition. History They were originally established in 1626 as a pious association of ladies formed in 1626 for the care ...

, who had been expelled from the order's former mother house Trebnitz Abbey, in

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

. Grafschaft is now the mother house. This is a nursing order, and a large part of the premises is now used as a hospital.Krankenhaus-klostergrafschaft.de: History of the hospital
There is also a museum of the abbey's history.

References

External links

Hospital Grafschaft Abbey
{{Authority control Benedictine monasteries in Germany Monasteries in North Rhine-Westphalia Heritage sites in North Rhine-Westphalia 1072 establishments in Europe Christian monasteries established in the 11th century Schmallenberg Buildings and structures in Hochsauerlandkreis