Olimje Castle ( sl, Grad Olimje) is a 16th-century castle located in the settlement of

Olimje Olimje () is a settlement in the Municipality of Podčetrtek in eastern Slovenia. The area around Podčetrtek is part of the traditional region of Styria. It is now included in the Savinja Statistical Region. History Olimje was created as a settl ...

, part of the Municipality of

Podčetrtek Podčetrtek ( or ; german: Windisch Landsberg) is a settlement in eastern Slovenia by the river Sotla. It is the seat of the Municipality of Podčetrtek. The area belongs to the traditional region of Styria. It is now included in the Savinja St ...

in eastern

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

. It is currently a

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

History

The predecessor of the current castle occupied the site since c. 1000, and first belonged to the counts von Peilestein (known locally as "Pilštajn"), including Hemma of Gurk ( sl, Sv. Ema Krška), an 11th-century saint and member of the family. Around 1550, a Count Tattenbach rebuilt the castle in

renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

style, at the same time adding a defensive ditch to guard against

Turkish incursions Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

. In 1658 the castle was bought by

Baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

Ivan Zakmardy of

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...

, who began converting it into a monastery, and in 1663 donated it to brothers of the Pauline order from Lepoglava,

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

. Between 1665 and 1675, they completed the conversion and added a handsome

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 ...

church, whose altar of the

Assumption of Mary The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it in 1950 in his apostolic constitution ''Munificentissimus Deus'' as follows: We proclaim and define it to be a dogma revealed by Go ...

is considered one of the finest baroque altars in Slovenia. In 1740, the monk

Ivan Ranger Johann Baptist Ranger ( Croatian: ''Ivan Krstitelj Ranger'', Slovene: ''Janez Krstnik Ranger''; 1700–1753) was a Tyrolese baroque painter. Career Ranger was born in Tyrol. He entered the Pauline monastic order as a child. He started to paint ...

painted the entire presbytery, and a side chapel was built and decorated. The Paulines also established a pharmacy, among the oldest in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

; the monastery contains a fresco honoring

Paracelsus Paracelsus (; ; 1493 – 24 September 1541), born Theophrastus von Hohenheim (full name Philippus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim), was a Swiss physician, alchemist, lay theologian, and philosopher of the German Renaissance. He w ...

. The anticlerical reforms of Joseph II forced the monks out, as their activities did not include running a school or other charitable institution, and Olimje was not a

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

, which it became in 1785. The former monastery was bought by the noble house of Attems in 1805; due to high taxes, the new owners could however not afford the upkeep of the entire structure, and had the north and west wings torn down. The castle was nationalized after

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 opposin ...

. In 1974, a major earthquake badly damaged it; soon afterward it was thoroughly renovated with the assistance of national, municipal, and parish funds. The sanctuary and parish were given to the Conventual Franciscans in 1990. On 15 August 1999, they revived the monastery after 217 years. Today they care for both pilgrims and the tourists visiting the historic castle and pharmacy. Due to public interest, they have also established a

herbal A herbal is a book containing the names and descriptions of plants, usually with information on their medicinal, tonic, culinary, toxic, hallucinatory, aromatic, or magical powers, and the legends associated with them.Arber, p. 14. A herbal m ...

apothecary.

Gallery

Image:Minorit monastery Olimlje (5).jpg, Olimje Castle, herb garden Image:Olimjesamvhod.JPG, Olimje Castle, church facade File:Olimje_Kloster_Olimje_Kirche_Innen_Chor_2.JPG, Church main altar, devoted to St. Mary

References

Sources

Olimje Monastery at GremoVen.comPodčetrtek Official Website
{{Coord, 46, 9, 0.17, N, 15, 33, 46.62, E, type:landmark_region:SI, display=title Castles in Styria (Slovenia) Palaces in Slovenia Franciscan monasteries in Slovenia