Roskilde Abbey or Our Lady's Abbey, Roskilde (''Roskilde Kloster'' or ''Vor Frue Kloster''), was a nunnery dedicated to

Saint Mary the Virgin Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

. The abbey was located at

Roskilde Roskilde ( , ) is a city west of Copenhagen on the Danish island of Zealand. With a population of 51,916 (), the city is a business and educational centre for the region and the 10th largest city in Denmark. It is governed by the administrative ...

on the Danish island of

Zealand Zealand ( da, Sjælland ) at 7,031 km2 is the largest and most populous island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 January 2020. It is the 1 ...

. It was founded in the early 12th century for

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nuns, but in 1177 became part of the Cistercian reform movement. The abbey was suppressed in 1536 during the

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

Reformation in Denmark 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 is now the site the Old Church of Our Lady, Roskilde (''Gammel Vor Frue Kirke''). Gammel Vor Frue Kirke Roskilde Denmark entrance

History

Roskilde Abbey was chiefly known for the tomb of Saint Margrethe of Roskilde, also known as Margaret of Ølse or Margaret of Højelse, who died at Ølsemagle or Højelse in 1176. She was married to Herlog in Ølsemagle near Kjøge. Margrethe was murdered by her husband and had been buried as a suicide on the beach at Køge. As a person who committed suicide, she was buried with no religious ceremony. After miracles were declared to have happened near her grave, her remains were moved to Roskilde Abbey in 1176 by Absalon of Lund, Bishop of Roskilde, a kinsman of Margrethe; he arranged for the construction of a suitable shrine in the church, and transferred the nunnery to the Cistercians in the following year. Despite Absalon's best efforts, and also despite the local veneration, Margrethe was never formally canonised. The shrine was nevertheless later declared a place of pilgrimage by the Pope, and the nuns were allotted one third of the income generated by it. Despite all efforts, however, the center of the ''

cultus Cultus may refer to: *Cult (religious practice) * ''Cultus'' (stonefly), a genus of stoneflies * Cultus Bay, a bay in Washington * Cultus Lake (disambiguation) *Cultus River, a river in Oregon *Suzuki Cultus The Suzuki Cultus is a supermini car ...

'' remained the small chapel built near Margrethe's original grave on the beach.

References

Other Sources

Ancient See of Roskilde
Centre for Dominican Studies of Dacia

Den katolske kirke

Centre for Dominican Studies of Dacia History of Roskilde Benedictine monasteries in Denmark Cistercian monasteries in Denmark Cistercian nunneries in Denmark Catholic Church in Denmark Christian monasteries established in the 12th century Roskilde Benedictine nunneries in Denmark Buildings and structures in Region Zealand 1536 disestablishments in Denmark Monasteries dissolved under the Danish Reformation {{Denmark-struct-stub