St. Alban's Abbey, Mainz (Stift St. Alban vor Mainz) originated as 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 ...

abbey, founded in 787 or 796 by Archbishop Richulf (787–813) in honour of Saint

Alban of Mainz Alban of Mainz (Latin: ''Albanus'' or ''Albinus''; supposedly died in or near Mainz) was a Catholic priest, missionary, and martyr in the Late Roman Empire. He is venerated as Saint Alban of Mainz in the Catholic Church, not to be confused with S ...

, located to the south of

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...

on the hill later called the ''Albansberg''. It was turned into a collegiate foundation (''Herrenstift'') in 1442. The buildings were entirely destroyed in 1552, although the foundation retained a legal existence until its formal dissolution in 1802. The abbey was initially renowned for its school, "famous for its teaching and its piety" (''pietate doctrinaque inclinitum'') and for its beautiful church. The school was the origin of the Carolingian court school. One of its famous teachers was

Rabanus Maurus Rabanus Maurus Magnentius ( 780 – 4 February 856), also known as Hrabanus or Rhabanus, was a Frankish Benedictine monk, theologian, poet, encyclopedist and military writer who became archbishop of Mainz in East Francia. He was the author of the ...

, born c 780 in Mainz. The importance of the place was reflected in the extraordinary size of the hall. The church was inaugurated on 1 December 805 by Richulf and remained the largest church of Mainz until construction of

Mainz Cathedral , native_name_lang = , image = Mainzer Dom nw.jpg , imagesize = , imagelink = , imagealt = , caption = , pushpin map = , pushpin label position = , pushpin map alt = , pushpin mapsize = , relief = , map caption = , iso regi ...

was begun by

Willigis Willigis ( la, Willigisus; german: Willigis, Willegis; 940 – 23 February 1011 AD) was Archbishop of Mainz from 975 until his death as well as archchancellor of the Holy Roman Empire. Life Willigus was born in the Duchy of Saxony, possibly at ...

History

The abbey was founded near the

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its name ...

of Saint Alban founded in 413 and developed as part of the

Carolingian Renaissance The Carolingian Renaissance was the first of three medieval renaissances, a period of cultural activity in the Carolingian Empire. It occurred from the late 8th century to the 9th century, taking inspiration from the State church of the Roman Emp ...

. The oldest church on the site was erected during the late Roman period and was a building with a single

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

, with an area of exactly 50 by 100 Roman feet. In 805 the Carolingian basilica was consecrated, comprising three naves, but possibly originally without the

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building withi ...

and the two

apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an ''exedra''. In ...

s. At the western end was a hall the same size as the main nave, above which was a chapel of

St. Michael Michael (; he, מִיכָאֵל, lit=Who is like El od, translit=Mīḵāʾēl; el, Μιχαήλ, translit=Mikhaḗl; la, Michahel; ar, ميخائيل ، مِيكَالَ ، ميكائيل, translit=Mīkāʾīl, Mīkāl, Mīkhāʾīl), also ...

. The two western towers, known from later illustrations, were added in the Romanesque period. The

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

, erected between 1300 and 1500, was extraordinarily large. The floor plan of

Schloss Johannisberg Schloss Johannisberg is a castle and winery in the village of Johannisberg (Geisenheim), Johannisberg to the west of Wiesbaden, Hesse, in the Rheingau (wine region), Rheingau wine-growing region of Germany. It has been making wine for over 900 ...

, originally built as a monastery, reflects a similar construction, because St. Alban's was its mother house. The abbey kept the relics of St. Caesarius of Terracina.

Seventh and eighth centuries

The existence of a monastic community here since the seventh century is proved by gravestones. In 794, even before the completion of the buildings,

Fastrada Fastrada (c. 765 – 10 August 794) was queen consort of East Francia by marriage to Charlemagne, as his third wife. Life Fastrada was born ''circa'' 765 at Ingelheim, the daughter of the powerful East Frankish Count Rudolph (also called Eadol ...

, one of the wives of

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first Holy ...

, was buried here. Charlemagne co-financed the construction. Later the Archbishops of Mainz had their last resting-place here, which was previously, until the time of

Saint Boniface Boniface, OSB ( la, Bonifatius; 675 – 5 June 754) was an English Benedictines, Benedictine monk and leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of the Frankish Empire during the eighth century. He organised significant ...

, at St. Hilarius's. Archeological excavations during the years 1907 to 1911 indicated that as early as the Roman period and

late antiquity Late antiquity is the time of transition from classical antiquity to the Middle Ages, generally spanning the 3rd–7th century in Europe and adjacent areas bordering the Mediterranean Basin. The popularization of this periodization in English ha ...

a graveyard with a church existed here. It may be assumed that Saint Alban's grave was among the discoveries. During an earthquake in 858 parts of the church were destroyed.

Fortification

The later Archbishop of Mainz (1328–1336)

Baldwin of Luxembourg Baldwin of Luxembourg (c. 1285 – 21 January 1354) was the Archbishop- Elector of Trier and Archchancellor of Burgundy from 1307 to his death. From 1328 to 1336, he was the diocesan administrator of the archdiocese of Mainz and from 1331 to 13 ...

fortified the abbeys of St. Alban's, St. Jakob's and St. Victor's, which at that period were located outside the town walls.

Destruction

St. Alban's was sacked and burnt down on the evening of 28 August 1552 during the

Second Margrave War The Second Margrave War () was a conflict in the Holy Roman Empire between 1552 and 1555. Instigated by Albert Alcibiades, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach and Brandenburg-Bayreuth, it involved numerous raids, plunderings, and the destruction of ...

Albert Alcibiades, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach Albert II (german: Albrecht; 28 March 15228 January 1557) was the Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach (Brandenburg-Bayreuth) from 1527 to 1553. He was a member of the Franconian branch of the House of Hohenzollern. Because of his bellicose nature, ...

. It was not rebuilt. A chapel was constructed from the ruins of the church , which was in its turn severely damaged in the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...

and completely destroyed during the siege of Mainz in 1793. In 1802 St. Alban's Abbey, which until then had retained a nominal existence, was formally dissolved under

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

Today

130 years after its termination the veneration of Saint Alban was revived by the construction of the new St. Alban's parish church, the first church to be built in the Diocese of Mainz after World War I. Nothing remains of the buildings on the original abbey site in the present ''Oberstadt'' of Mainz on the ''Albansberg'', but the modern street ''Auf dem Albansberg'' approximately follows the foundations of the church. The precious

sacramentary In the Western Church of the Early and High Middle Ages, a sacramentary was a book used for liturgical services and the mass by a bishop or priest. Sacramentaries include only the words spoken or sung by him, unlike the missals of later cent ...

from the abbey's

scriptorium Scriptorium (), literally "a place for writing", is commonly used to refer to a room in medieval European monasteries devoted to the writing, copying and illuminating of manuscripts commonly handled by monastic scribes. However, lay scribes and ...

is preserved in the collection of valuables in the ''Martinus-Bibliothek'', also in Mainz.

Burials

(d. 794), fourth wife of

. *

Liutgard of Saxony (died 953) Liutgarde of Saxony (932 – 18 November 953), a member of the Ottonian dynasty, was Duchess of Lorraine from 947 until her death by her marriage with Duke Conrad the Red. She and Conrad became progenitors of the Salian dynasty. Life Liutgarde w ...

, daughter of

Emperor Otto I Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), traditionally known as Otto the Great (german: Otto der Große, it, Ottone il Grande), was East Francia, East Frankish king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the olde ...

. * Charles of Aquitaine (d. 863), Archbishop of Mainz from 856 to 863. *

William, Archbishop of Mainz William (929 – 2 March 968) was Archbishop of Mainz from 17 December 954 until his death. He was the son of the Emperor Otto I the Great and a Wendish mother. On 17 December 954, he was appointed to the archbishopric of Mainz following ...

(d. 968). * Liudolf (d. 957), Duke of Swabia and first son of Otto.Henry Parkes, The Making of Liturgy in the Ottonian Church, p.78

References

* Reinhard Schmidt: ''Die Abtei St. Alban vor Mainz im hohen und späten Mittelalter. Geschichte, Verfassung und Besitz eines Klosters im Spannungsfeld zwischen Erzbischof, Stadt, Kurie und Reich. (Beiträge zur Geschichte der Stadt Mainz)'' (Mainz 1996) * Brigitte Oberle: ''Das Stift St. Alban vor Mainz. Aspekte der Umwandlung des Benediktinerklosters St. Alban in ein Ritterstift im 15. Jahrhundert.'' (2005) *''Les Ordines Romani du haut moyen âge'', Michel Andrieu, Louvain: Spicilegium Sacrum Lovaniense Administration, 1961–1974. *''Le Pontifical romano-germanique du dixième siècle'', ed. C. Vogel and R. Elze (Studi e Testi vols. 226–7 (text), 266 (introduction and indices), 3 vols., Rome, 1963–72).

External links

Saint Alban ante Mainz
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Albans Abbey, Mainz 10th-century churches in Germany 14th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Germany Albans Romanesque architecture in Germany Monasteries in Rhineland-Palatinate Christian monasteries established in the 8th century History of Mainz Roman Catholic churches in Mainz Burial sites of the Ottonian dynasty