Preetz Priory (german: Kloster Preetz) is a former

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

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 ...

nunnery in the town of

Preetz Preetz () is a town southeast of Kiel in the district of Plön, in Schleswig-Holstein, Northern Germany. Preetz is also known as "Schusterstadt" (English: 'shoemaker town') named after shoemakers who used to live and work in this town. Preetz has ...

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sch ...

. It operates today as a residence for ladies.

History

The monastery was founded in 1211 by

Graf (feminine: ) is a historical title of the German nobility, usually translated as "count". Considered to be intermediate among noble ranks, the title is often treated as equivalent to the British title of "earl" (whose female version is "coun ...

Albrecht of

Orlamünde Orlamünde () is a small town in the Saale-Holzland district, in Thuringia, Germany. It is part of the ''Verwaltungsgemeinschaft'' ("collective municipality") Südliches Saaletal. Geography The town centre stretches along the steep banks of th ...

, nephew of King

Valdemar II of Denmark Valdemar (28 June 1170 – 28 March 1241), later remembered as Valdemar the Victorious (), was the King of Denmark (being Valdemar II) from 1202 until his death in 1241. Background He was the second son of King Valdemar I of Denmark and Sophi ...

. He founded it following a

mystical experience Scholarly approaches to mysticism include typology (disambiguation), typologies of mysticism and the explanation of mystical states. Since the 19th century, mystical experience has evolved as a distinctive concept. It is closely related to "mystic ...

which he later recounted happened while he was stalking a deer. After following it into a

glen A glen is a valley, typically one that is long and bounded by gently sloped concave sides, unlike a ravine, which is deep and bounded by steep slopes. Whittow defines it as a "Scottish term for a deep valley in the Highlands" that is "narrower ...

, the deer stood still and he suddenly saw a gleaming cross appear between its antlers. He felt that the site was a holy place which he called the Field of Mary (german: Marienfelde) and, to honor the vision, founded a monastery of nuns at a location some 2 miles (4 km) away. A monastery on the actual site of the vision was built only in 1260. Suppressed in the 16th century due to 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 in ...

, it became an aristocratic Lutheran women's convent belonging to the

knighthood. It continues in this capacity.

References

External sources

* Christian Stocks, Bernhard Schütz: ''Preetz. Ev. Adeliges Kloster, Ehem. Benediktinerinnenkloster Campus Beatae Mariae.'' Broschüre, Schnell & Steiner, Kunstführer Nr. 1030 von 1975, .

External links

Official website of Preetz Priory

Christian monasteries established in the 13th century Buildings and structures in Plön (district) 16th-century disestablishments in the Holy Roman Empire {{Christian-monastery-stub