Herford Abbey
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Herford Abbey (german: Frauenstift Herford) was the oldest women's religious house in the
Duchy of Saxony The Duchy of Saxony ( nds, Hartogdom Sassen, german: Herzogtum Sachsen) was originally the area settled by the Saxons in the late Early Middle Ages, when they were subdued by Charlemagne during the Saxon Wars from 772 and incorporated into the C ...
. It was founded as a house of secular canonesses in 789, initially in Müdehorst (near the modern
Bielefeld Bielefeld () is a city in the Ostwestfalen-Lippe Region in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population of 341,755, it is also the most populous city in the administrative region (''Regierungsbezirk'') of Detmold and the ...
) by a nobleman called
Waltger Waltger was a Saxons, Saxon nobleman who founded Herford Abbey in the 830s. In 838, he gave the monastery to the Emperor Louis the Pious, who in turn placed it under the authority of the Benedictine Order, Benedictine nunnery of Notre-Dame de Soiss ...
, who moved it in about 800 onto the lands of his estate ''Herivurth'' (later ''Oldenhervorde'') which stood at the crossing of a number of important roads and fords over the Aa and the
Werre The Werre is a river in the Detmold region (Regierungsbezirk) of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, left tributary of the Weser. Its source is near Horn-Bad Meinberg. The Werre flows generally north through the towns Detmold, Lage, Bad Salzuflen, H ...
. The present city of
Herford Herford (; nds, Hiarwede) is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, located in the lowlands between the hill chains of the Wiehen Hills and the Teutoburg Forest. It is the capital of the district of Herford (district), Herford. Geography ...
grew up on this site around the abbey.


History


9th–12th centuries

The abbey was dedicated in 832 and was elevated to the status of a ''
Reichsabtei Princely abbeys (german: Fürstabtei, ''Fürststift'') and Imperial abbeys (german: Reichsabtei, ''Reichskloster'', ''Reichsstift'', ''Reichsgotthaus'') were religious establishments within the Holy Roman Empire which enjoyed the status of impe ...
'' ("Imperial abbey") under Emperor
Louis the Pious Louis the Pious (german: Ludwig der Fromme; french: Louis le Pieux; 16 April 778 – 20 June 840), also called the Fair, and the Debonaire, was King of the Franks and co-emperor with his father, Charlemagne, from 813. He was also King of Aqui ...
(d. 840). In ecclesiastical matters it was answerable directly to the
Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
and was endowed with a third of the estates originally intended for
Corvey Abbey The Princely Abbey of Corvey (german: link=no, Fürststift Corvey or Fürstabtei Corvey) is a former Benedictine abbey and ecclesiastical principality now in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was one of the half-dozen self-ruling '' princely ...
. In 860, at the instigation of the abbess Haduwy (Hedwig), the bones of Saint Pusinna, later the patron saint of Herford, were brought from her hermitage at
Binson The Binson Echorec is an echo machine produced by Italian (Milan) company Binson founded by Dr. Bonfiglio Bini, an early manufacturer of such devices. Unlike most other analog echo machines, they used an analog magnetic drum recorder instead of ...
("vicus bausionensis" near
Châlons-en-Champagne Châlons-en-Champagne () is a city in the Grand Est region of France. It is the capital of the department of Marne, despite being only a quarter the size of the city of Reims. Formerly called Châlons-sur-Marne, the city was officially renam ...
,
Corbie Corbie (; nl, Korbei) is a commune of the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography The small town is situated up river from Amiens, in the département of Somme and is the main town of the canton of Corbie. It lies ...
). The presence of these relics in the abbey increased its importance and its dedication was changed in due course to Saints Mary and Pusinna. In the time of the abbess Matilda I her granddaughter
Matilda Matilda or Mathilda may refer to: Animals * Matilda (chicken) (1990–2006), World's Oldest Living Chicken record holder * Matilda (horse) (1824–1846), British Thoroughbred racehorse * Matilda, a dog of the professional wrestling tag-team The ...
, later Saint Matilda, was brought up here. In 909, through the negotiations of her grandmother, she was married to Henry, Duke of Saxony and later King Henry I of Germany.In 936, in memory of her late husband, Matilda founded another house of secular canonesses, the famous
Quedlinburg Abbey Quedlinburg Abbey (german: Stift Quedlinburg or ) was a house of secular canonesses ''( Frauenstift)'' in Quedlinburg in what is now Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was founded in 936 on the initiative of Saint Mathilda, the widow of the East Frankis ...
.
Between 919 and 924 Herford was destroyed by
Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars ( ; hu, magyarok ), are a nation and  ethnic group native to Hungary () and historical Hungarian lands who share a common culture, history, ancestry, and language. The Hungarian language belongs to the Urali ...
but was rebuilt by 927.


''Reichsunmittelbarkeit''

In 1147 the abbey, which by this time had almost 850 estates and farms, was granted
Imperial immediacy Imperial immediacy (german: Reichsfreiheit or ') was a privileged constitutional and political status rooted in German feudal law under which the Imperial estates of the Holy Roman Empire such as Imperial cities, prince-bishoprics and secular pri ...
(german: Reichsunmittelbarkeit). This made it an independent territory within the
Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...
(although admittedly a very small one, comprising part of the area of the present city of Herford) which lasted until 1803. The abbesses became Imperial princesses (german:
Reichsfürst Prince of the Holy Roman Empire ( la, princeps imperii, german: Reichsfürst, cf. ''Fürst'') was a title attributed to a hereditary ruler, nobleman or prelate recognised as such by the Holy Roman Emperor. Definition Originally, possessors o ...
innen) and sat in the Reichstag in the College of Prelates of the Rhine. The territory belonged to the
Lower Rhenish-Westphalian Circle Lower may refer to: *Lower (surname) *Lower Township, New Jersey *Lower Receiver (firearms) *Lower Wick Lower Wick is a small hamlet located in the county of Gloucestershire, England. It is situated about five miles south west of Dursley, eig ...
. The first ''
Vögte During the Middle Ages, an (sometimes given as modern English: advocate; German: ; French: ) was an office-holder who was legally delegated to perform some of the secular responsibilities of a major feudal lord, or for an institution such as ...
'' seem to have been the Billunger, and after they died out,
Henry the Lion Henry the Lion (german: Heinrich der Löwe; 1129/1131 – 6 August 1195) was a member of the Welf dynasty who ruled as the duke of Saxony and Bavaria from 1142 and 1156, respectively, until 1180. Henry was one of the most powerful German p ...
, who appointed the Counts of Schwalenberg as under-''Vögte''. From 1180, after the fall of Henry the Lion, they exercised the same function for the
Archbishopric of Cologne The Archdiocese of Cologne ( la, Archidioecesis Coloniensis; german: Erzbistum Köln) is an archdiocese of the Catholic Church in western North Rhine-Westphalia and northern Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany. History The Electorate of Cologn ...
and the
Duchy of Westphalia The Duchy of Westphalia (german: Herzogtum Westfalen) was a historic territory in the Holy Roman Empire, which existed from 1102 to 1803. It was located in the greater region of Westphalia, originally one of the three main regions in the Germa ...
. By 1261 the office seems to have passed to the Counts of Sternberg and in 1382 to the Counts of Jülich-Berg. In the vicinity of the abbey there grew up the town of Herford, which had acquired municipal rights by 1170/1180 and later, as the Reichsstadt Herford, acquired ''Reichsunmittelbarkeit'' in its own right. By the end of the 15th century, "Sancta Herfordia" ("Holy Herford"), as it became known, had some 37 churches, chapels, monasteries and other religious houses, and hospitals. Its spiritual life was thus comparable to that of a great centre such as Cologne.


Reformation

In 1533, during the
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 ...
, Herford Abbey became
Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...
, under the
Electors of Brandenburg This article lists the Margraves and Electors of Brandenburg during the period of time that Brandenburg was a constituent state of the Holy Roman Empire. The Mark, or ''March'', of Brandenburg was one of the primary constituent states of the Hol ...
. From 1649 for over a century the abbesses were all
Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...
but that did not alter the Lutheran character of the principality.


Dissolution

In 1802 the abbey was dissolved in the course of
secularisation In sociology, secularization (or secularisation) is the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular institutions. The ''secularization thesis'' expresses the ...
under the terms of the ''
Reichsdeputationshauptschluss The ' (formally the ', or "Principal Conclusion of the Extraordinary Imperial Delegation"), sometimes referred to in English as the Final Recess or the Imperial Recess of 1803, was a resolution passed by the ' (Imperial Diet) of the Holy Roman Em ...
'' and on 25 February 1803 was annexed to the
County of Ravensberg The County of Ravensberg (german: Grafschaft Ravensberg) was a historical county of the Holy Roman Empire. Its territory was in present-day eastern Westphalia, Germany at the foot of the Osning or Teutoburg Forest. History Ravensberg was fir ...
, which belonged to the
Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Re ...
. In 1804 it was turned into a collegiate foundation for men, and in 1810 finally suppressed. The former abbey church remains in use as Herford Minster (''Herforder Münster'').


Abbesses

* Theodrada, Tetta (838 – after 840) * Addila (before 844 – after 853) * Hedwig (before 858 – after 888) * Matilda I (before 908 – after 911;
Immedinger The Immedingians (German: ''Immedinger'') were a noble family of medieval Saxony, descended from the Saxon leader Widukind. The most notable member was Saint Matilda (d. 968), queen consort of King Henry I of Germany. History They were important ...
) * Imma (before 973 – after 995; Billunger) * Godesdiu (before 1002 – after 1040; Billunger) * Swanhild (before 1051–1076) * Gertrud I (before 1138 – after 1139) * Jutta (Jutta of
Arnsberg Arnsberg (; wep, Arensperg) is a town in the Hochsauerland county, in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the location of the Regierungsbezirk Arnsberg administration and one of the three local administration offices of the Hochs ...
; before 1146 – after 1162) * Ludgard I (before 1163 – after 1170) * Eilika (c. 1212) * Gertrud II (Gertrud of
Lippe Lippe () is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Herford, Minden-Lübbecke, Höxter, Paderborn, Gütersloh, and district-free Bielefeld, which forms the region Ostwestfalen-Lippe. The d ...
; before 1217 – after 1233) * Ida (before 1238 – after 1264) * Pinnosa (before 1265 – after 1276) * Mechthild II (Mechtild of Waldeck; before 1277 – after 1288) * Irmgard (Irmgard of
Wittgenstein Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein ( ; ; 26 April 1889 – 29 April 1951) was an Austrians, Austrian-British people, British philosopher who worked primarily in logic, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of mind, and the philosophy o ...
; before 1290–1323) * Lutgard II (Lutgard of Bicken; 1324–1360) * Heilwig (Heilwig of Bentheim; 1361) * Elisabeth I (Elisabeth of
Berg Berg may refer to: People *Berg (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *Berg Ng (born 1960), Hong Kong actor * Berg (footballer) (born 1989), Brazilian footballer Former states *Berg (state), county and duchy of the Holy ...
; 1361–1374) * Hillegund (Hillegund of Oetgenbach; 1374–1409) * Mechthild III (Mechtild of Waldeck; 1409–1442) ** Margaret of
Brunswick-Grubenhagen The Principality of Grubenhagen was a subdivision of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg, ruled by the Grubenhagen line of the House of Welf from 1291. It is also known as Brunswick-Grubenhagen. The principality fell to the Brunswick Principality of L ...
, rival abbess 1442–1443 * Margaret I (Margaret of
Gleichen Gleichen is the name of two groups of castles in Germany, thus named from their resemblance to each other (german: gleich like, or resembling). Castles in Thuringia between Gotha and Erfurt The first is a group of three (hence called “die dre ...
; 1443–1475) ** Jakobe of
Neuenahr Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler () is a spa town in the German Bundesland of Rhineland-Palatinate that serves as the capital of the Ahrweiler district. The A61 motorway connects the town with cities like Cologne and Mainz. Formed by the merging of th ...
, rival abbess 1476–1479 * Anna I (Anna of Hunolstein; 1476–1494) * Bonizet (Bonizet of
Limburg-Stirum The House of Limburg-Stirum (or Limburg-Styrum), which adopted its name in the 12th century from the immediate county of Limburg an der Lenne in what is now Germany, is one of the oldest families in Europe. It is the eldest and only surviving br ...
; 1494–1524) * Anna II (Anna of
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; 1524–1565) * Margaret II (Margaret of Lippe; 1565–1578) * Felicitas I (Felicitas of Eberstein; 1578–1586) * Magdalene I (Magdalene of Lippe; 1586–1604) * Felicitas II (Felicitas of Eberstein; 1604–1621) * Magdalene II (Magdalene of Lippe; 1621–1640) * Sidonia (Sidonia of
Oldenburg Oldenburg may also refer to: Places *Mount Oldenburg, Ellsworth Land, Antarctica *Oldenburg (city), an independent city in Lower Saxony, Germany **Oldenburg (district), a district historically in Oldenburg Free State and now in Lower Saxony *Olde ...
; 1640–1649) ** Maria Clara Theresa of Wartenberg, rival abbess 1629–1631 * Elisabeth II (Elisabeth Luise Juliana of the Palatinate-Zweibrücken; 1649–1667) * Elisabeth III (Elisabeth of the
Electorate of the Palatinate The Electoral Palatinate (german: Kurpfalz) or the Palatinate (), officially the Electorate of the Palatinate (), was a state that was part of the Holy Roman Empire. The electorate had its origins under the rulership of the Counts Palatine of ...
; 1667–1680) * Elisabeth IV (Elisabeth Albertine of
Anhalt-Dessau Anhalt-Dessau was a principality of the Holy Roman Empire and later a duchy of the German Confederation. Ruled by the House of Ascania, it was created in 1396 following the partition of the Principality of Anhalt-Zerbst, and finally merged into th ...
; 1680–1686) * Elisabeth V (Elisabeth of
Hesse-Cassel The Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel (german: Landgrafschaft Hessen-Kassel), spelled Hesse-Cassel during its entire existence, was a state in the Holy Roman Empire that was directly subject to the Emperor. The state was created in 1567 when the Lan ...
; 1686–1688) * Charlotte Sophia (Charlotte Sophia of
Courland Courland (; lv, Kurzeme; liv, Kurāmō; German and Scandinavian languages: ''Kurland''; la, Curonia/; russian: Курляндия; Estonian: ''Kuramaa''; lt, Kuršas; pl, Kurlandia) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands in western Latvia. ...
; 1688–1728) * Johanna Charlotte (Johanna Charlotte of Anhalt-Dessau; 1729–1750) * Sophia (Sophia of
Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp Holstein-Gottorp or Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp () is the Historiography, historiographical name, as well as contemporary shorthand name, for the parts of the duchies of Duchy of Schleswig, Schleswig and Duchy of Holstein, Holstein, also known as ...
; 1750–1764) * Frederica Charlotte (Frederica Charlotte of
Brandenburg-Schwedt Brandenburg-Schwedt was a secundogeniture of the Hohenzollern margraves of Brandenburg, established by Prince Philip William who took his residence at Schwedt Castle in 1689. By appanage, they administered the manors of Schwedt and Vierraden on ...
; 1764–1802; d. 1808) **
Princess Christine Charlotte of Hesse-Kassel Princess Christine Charlotte of Hesse-Kassel (11 February 1725 – 4 June 1782) was a Hessian princess who lived as a secular canoness before becoming a coadjutor princess-abbess of Herford Abbey. Biography Princess Christina Charlotte of Hes ...
(1766–1779) as
coadjutor The term coadjutor (or coadiutor, literally "co-assister" in Latin) is a title qualifier indicating that the holder shares the office with another person, with powers equal to the other in all but formal order of precedence. These include: * Coadj ...
abbess


Notes


References

* R. Pape: ''Über die Anfänge Herfords''. Dissertation, 1955 * A. Cohausz: ''Ein Jahrtausend geistliches Damenstift Herford''. In: ''Herforder Jahrbuch I''. 1960 * ''Herforder Geschichtsquellen''. 1968 * R. Pape: ''Waltger und die Gründung Herfords''. 1988 * R. Pape: ''Herford zur Kaiserzeit''. 1989 * R. Pape: ''Sancta Herfordia. Geschichte Herfords von den Anfängen bis zur Gegenwart''. 1989 * T. Helmert-Corvey (Hg.): ''1200 Jahre Herford''. 1989 * H. Bei der Wieden: ''Die Äbtissinnen der Reichsabtei Herford in der Neuzeit''. In: ''Historisches Jahrbuch für den Kreis Herford 2000''. 1999 * H. Bei der Wieden: ''Die Herkunft der Äbtissinnen der Reichsabtei Herford vom Ende des 13. bis zur Mitte des 17. Jahrhunderts''. In: ''Historisches Jahrbuch für den Kreis Herford 2002/2003''. 2002


External links

* {{Authority control Monasteries in North Rhine-Westphalia Imperial abbeys disestablished in 1802–03 Lutheran women's religious houses Buildings and structures in Herford (district) 8th-century establishments in Germany Churches completed in 789 8th-century churches in Germany