Neumünster Abbey (

Luxembourgish Luxembourgish ( ; also ''Luxemburgish'', ''Luxembourgian'', ''Letzebu(e)rgesch''; Luxembourgish: ) is a West Germanic language that is spoken mainly in Luxembourg. About 400,000 people speak Luxembourgish worldwide. As a standard form of th ...

: ''Abtei Neimënster'', french: Abbaye de Neumünster) is a public meeting place, cultural centre, and former

Benedictine abbey , 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 ...

located in the Grund district of

Luxembourg City Luxembourg ( lb, Lëtzebuerg; french: Luxembourg; german: Luxemburg), also known as Luxembourg City ( lb, Stad Lëtzebuerg, link=no or ; french: Ville de Luxembourg, link=no; german: Stadt Luxemburg, link=no or ), is the capital city of the Gr ...

in southern

Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...

History

After the original Benedictine abbey on the Altmünster Plateau was destroyed in 1542, the monks began building a new abbey or "Neumünster" in 1606 in the Grund. In 1618, a marble tomb was constructed to house the bones of

John the Blind John the Blind or John of Luxembourg ( lb, Jang de Blannen; german: link=no, Johann der Blinde; cz, Jan Lucemburský; 10 August 1296 – 26 August 1346), was the Count of Luxembourg from 1313 and King of Bohemia from 1310 and titular King of ...

. The Abbey was destroyed in 1684 during the Siege of Luxembourg. The Abbey began to rebuild on the same site in 1688 and extended in 1720. In 1796, the French Directory enacted legislation that secularized Luxembourg's abbeys. In 1798, the Abbey was used as a prison and barracks. In 1805, the municipality's welfare office used the Abbey for an orphanage. The orphanage operated until 1807 when a gunpowder explosion destroyed the building. After 1815, the Abbey served as a military hospital for

German Confederation The German Confederation (german: Deutscher Bund, ) was an association of 39 predominantly German-speaking sovereign states in Central Europe. It was created by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 as a replacement of the former Holy Roman Empire, w ...

troops. In 1867, the Second Treaty of London declared Luxembourg a neutral and independent state, causing the Prussian garrison to leave the Abbey's grounds. From 1869 to 1985, the Abbey again served as a prison. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

s used the abbey to imprison political resisters to their occupation of Luxembourg. Among the most notable of those political prisoners was Luxembourg's best-known

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

Lucien Wercollier Lucien Wercollier (26 July 1908 – 24 April 2002) was a sculptor from Luxembourg. While he worked primarily in bronze and marble, some of his work is sculpted in wood, alabaster, stone and onyx. His public monuments in bronze and marble are ...

. From 1994 to 2004, the Abbey underwent restoration. It opened to the public in May 2004 as a meeting place and a cultural centre. It hosts concerts, exhibitions, and seminars. The abbey is also now home to the Lucien Wercollier Cloister, where many works from the sculptor's private collection are permanently displayed. Since 1998, it has been the home of the

European Institute of Cultural Routes The European Institute of Cultural Routes is a non-profit association based in Luxembourg whose aim is to help the Council of Europe, as a technical body, in the establishment of European Cultural Routes. It was established in 1998 and its role ...

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...

and

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...

signed their Treaty of Accession to the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...

on 25 April 2005 at Neumünster.

References

External links

* Religious buildings and structures in Luxembourg City Tourist attractions in Luxembourg City Convention centres in Luxembourg Benedictine monasteries in Luxembourg Christian monasteries established in the 17th century 1606 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire {{Luxembourg-struct-stub