The Blessed Utto was the first

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The fem ...

of the

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

Metten Abbey Metten Abbey, or St. Michael's Abbey at Metten (in German Abtei Metten or Kloster Metten) is a house of the Benedictine Order in Metten near Deggendorf, situated between the fringes of the Bavarian Forest and the valley of the Danube, in Bavaria i ...

of the

Benedictine Order , 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 ...

. His feast is celebrated on October 3.

Biography

Utto was presumably a monk at the abbey of Reichenau; his place of birth is unknown. According to tradition he was a relative and the godson of the priest and landlord

Gamelbert The Blessed Gamelbert was a Christian priest, who worked in the 8th century in the area of the present Deggendorf in Bavaria in Germany. Life Gamelbert is said to have been of noble descent and a lord of Michaelsbuch. In the mid-8th century he ...

in the Bavarian community Michaelsbuch, a few kilometers up from the confluence of the river

Isar The Isar is a river in Tyrol, Austria, and Bavaria, Germany, which is not navigable for watercraft above raft size. Its source is in the Karwendel range of the Alps in Tyrol; it enters Germany near Mittenwald and flows through Bad Tölz, Munic ...

on the right-hand side of the

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...

near the modern-day town of

Plattling Plattling is a town in the district of Deggendorf, Bavaria, Germany, on the river Isar, 9 km southwest of Deggendorf, just before it enters the Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roma ...

. As Gamelbert founded Metten Abbey on his ground around 766, he is said to have entrusted Utto with the settlement. Utto, who came from Reichenau to Metten together with twelve other monks was appointed the first abbot of the

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The conce ...

. The name Abbot Utto of Metten appears in 772 in the

Verbrüderungsbuch A confraternity book (german: Verbrüderungsbuch, la, liber confraternitatum or ''confraternitatis''), also called a ''liber memorialis'' (memorial book) or ''liber vitae'' (book of life), is a medieval register of the names of people who had ente ...

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 **Ger ...

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

abbeys) of the

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word ''wikt:synod, synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin ...

of Dingolfing and in 784 in the Verbrüderungsbuch of St. Peter's Archabbey in

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the ...

. He died on October 3, 829 in Metten Abbey.

Legend

According to late medieval legend,

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 the founder of Metten Abbey and Utto was a hermit in the woods around Metten. Charlemagne was said to have met him while hunting and to have promised the foundation of an abbey in the honour of

Saint 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 ...

on the request of this pious man (after 788). A small church called Uttobrunn was erected in the 17th century at a spring to commemorate the site of this alleged meeting.

Relics

Metten Abbey keeps a medieval

crosier A crosier or crozier (also known as a paterissa, pastoral staff, or bishop's staff) is a stylized staff that is a symbol of the governing office of a bishop or abbot and is carried by high-ranking prelates of Roman Catholic, Eastern Catholi ...

, that is revered as the staff of Blessed Utto. The crook is carved from walrus tooth to form a dragon encircling a lamb with a banner of victory. From comparison with similar objects it cannot be dated earlier than the beginning of the 13th century, however. The staff itself may be older, as a bronze band below the crook is inscribed with Romanesque majuscules: QVOD DŇS DominusPETRO, PETRVS TIBI CONTVLIT, VTTO (''What the Lord has assigned to Peter, Peter has assigned to you, Utto'').

References

*Bernhard Ponschab, ''Die seligen Utto und Gamelbert. Die Geschichte ihrer Verehrung und ihres Lebens'', Regensburg 1910. *''Bosls bayerische Biographie'', herausgegeben von Karl Bosl, Regensburg 1983, volume 1, 798. *Ekkart Sauser, ''Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon'', 2001, volume XIX, column 1462-1464

External links

* {{Authority control German abbots German beatified people German Benedictines 829 deaths Year of birth unknown