The Kołbacz Abbey is a former

Cistercian The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

monastery located in Kołbacz,

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, listed as a Historic Monument of Poland. It had several subsidiaries, with the other main centers located in

Oliwa Oliwa () (; ; ) is a northern district of the city of Gdańsk, Poland. From east it borders Przymorze and Żabianka, from the north Sopot and from the south with the districts of Strzyża, VII Dwór and Brętowo, while from the west with Mat ...

, Bierzwnik, and Mironice. It was itself a subsidiary of

Clairvaux Abbey Clairvaux Abbey (, ''l’abbaye de Clairvaux''; ) was a Cistercian monastery in Ville-sous-la-Ferté, from Bar-sur-Aube. The abbey was founded in 1115 by Bernard of Clairvaux. As a primary abbey, it was one of the most significant monasteri ...

Ville-sous-la-Ferté Ville-sous-la-Ferté () is a commune in the Aube department in the Grand Est region in north-central France. The best-known landmark of Ville-sous-la-Ferté is the nearby ruin of Clairvaux Abbey, now the site of Clairvaux Prison. Populatio ...

, although the funding monks originally arrived from the Danish Esrum Abbey in

Zealand Zealand ( ) is the largest and most populous islands of Denmark, island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size) at 7,031 km2 (2715 sq. mi.). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 Januar ...

. The abbey was founded in 1173 with the original Latin name "Mera Vallis", but eventually the older Slavic name, ''Kołbacz'' became closely associated with the place. The monks were invited into

Pomerania Pomerania ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The central and eastern part belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, West Pomeranian, Pomeranian Voivod ...

by Warcisław II Świętoborzyc, a

castellan A castellan, or constable, was the governor of a castle in medieval Europe. Its surrounding territory was referred to as the castellany. The word stems from . A castellan was almost always male, but could occasionally be female, as when, in 1 ...

Szczecin Szczecin ( , , ; ; ; or ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the Poland-Germany border, German border, it is a major port, seaport, the la ...

, as part of an agreement with

Valdemar I of Denmark Valdemar I Knudsen (14 January 1131 – 12 May 1182), also known as Valdemar the Great (), was King of Denmark from 1154 until his death in 1182. The reign of King Valdemar I saw the rise of Denmark, which reached its medieval zenith under his s ...

, who had besieged Szczecin and made Warcisław his vassal. The foundation was affirmed by Duke Bogusław I in 1173. The first abbot was Reinhold and the abbey began its activities in 1174. The wealth of the Abbey was based on banking, as much as land ownership. The abbey played an important role in the development of German settlements in the area, which was very popular in Poland. as the first villages of German-speaking inhabitants were founded close to the abbey. Currently it is the site of an agricultural complex near

, which partly houses the Zoological Experimental Institute of the Kraków Technical Institute.

Gallery

Kolbacz church (1).jpg, Sacred Heart church Kolbacz oltarz glowny.jpg, Main altar Biblioteka w Kołbaczu - panoramio.jpg, Abbot House

Gallery

References

See also