Krzeszów Abbey (, ) is a historical
Baroque
The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...
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 in
Krzeszów, Lower Silesia, Poland.
The Abbey, a 1242 Benedictine foundation, from 1289 to 1810 was run by Cistercians, until it was secularized by the
Prussian
Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, the House of Hohenzoll ...
state. Since 1919, it was again run by Benedictines, exiles from
Prague
Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
. The new location in post-war
West Germany
West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...
was referred to as Grüssau Abbey or Grüssau-Wimpfen. The site of the abbey in Krzeszów, Poland, is known as Krzeszów Abbey. The abbey's Basilica of the Assumption contains a mausoleum of dukes of the
Świdnica
Świdnica (; ; ) is a city on the Bystrzyca (Oder), Bystrzyca River in south-western Poland in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. As of 2021, it has a population of 55,413 inhabitants. It is the seat of Świdnica County, and also of the smaller dis ...
line of the Polish
Piast dynasty
The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented List of Polish monarchs, Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I of Poland, Mieszko I (–992). The Poland during the Piast dynasty, Piasts' royal rule in Pol ...
.
The name ''Grüssau Abbey'' refers to a house of the
Benedictine Order
The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly Christian mysticism, contemplative Christian monasticism, monastic Religious order (Catholic), order of the Catholic Church for men and f ...
founded in 1947 in the town of
Bad Wimpfen
Bad Wimpfen () is a historic spa town in the district of Heilbronn in the Baden-Württemberg region of southern Germany. It lies north of the city of Heilbronn, on the river Neckar.
Geography
Bad Wimpfen is located on the west bank of the River ...
in
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...
, where the German Grüssau (Krzeszów) community moved, after Krzeszów became again part of Poland following
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
.
The original abbey is now one of Poland's official national
Historic Monuments (''
Pomnik historii
Historic Monument (, ) is one of several categories of objects of cultural heritage in Poland, objects of cultural heritage (in the singular, ''zabytek'') in Poland.
To be recognized as a Polish historic monument, an object must be declared suc ...
''), as designated May 1, 2004, and tracked by the
National Heritage Board of Poland.
History
Silesia
On 8 May 1242, the monastery at Krzeszów in Lower Silesia in
fragmented Poland was founded by Duchess
Anna of Bohemia, widow of the High Duke of Poland
Henry II the Pious
Henry II the Pious (; 1196 – 9 April 1241) was Duke of Silesia and High Duke of Poland as well as Duke of South-Greater Poland from 1238 until his death. Between 1238 and 1239 he also served as regent of Sandomierz and Opole– Racibórz. He ...
, who had been killed at the
Battle of Legnica
The Battle of Legnica (), also known as the Battle of Liegnitz () or Battle of Wahlstatt (), was fought between the Mongol Empire and combined European forces at the village of Legnickie Pole (''Wahlstatt''), approximately southeast of the ci ...
during the
first Mongol invasion of Poland
The Mongol invasion of Poland from late 1240 to 1241 culminated in the Battle of Legnica, where the Mongols defeated an alliance which included forces from Testament of Bolesław III Wrymouth, fragmented Poland and their allies, led by Henry ...
. It was settled with Benedictine monks descending from the abbey of
Opatovice in
Bohemia
Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...
. In 1289 Anna's grandson Duke
Bolko I of Świdnica again acquired the abbey's lands and gave them to the Cistercians at
Henryków, who consecrated the new
Assumption of Mary
The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Catholic Mariology#Dogmatic teachings, Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it on 1 November 1950 in his apostolic constitution as follows:
It leaves open the question of w ...
Monastery Church in 1292. In 1392 the Silesian Duchy of
Świdnica
Świdnica (; ; ) is a city on the Bystrzyca (Oder), Bystrzyca River in south-western Poland in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. As of 2021, it has a population of 55,413 inhabitants. It is the seat of Świdnica County, and also of the smaller dis ...
was incorporated into the
Kingdom of Bohemia
The Kingdom of Bohemia (), sometimes referenced in English literature as the Czech Kingdom, was a History of the Czech lands in the High Middle Ages, medieval and History of the Czech lands, early modern monarchy in Central Europe. It was the pr ...
, an electorate of the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...
.
The Abbey was destroyed during the
Hussite Wars
The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars or the Hussite Revolution, were a series of civil wars fought between the Hussites and the combined Catholic forces of Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, a ...
and again during the
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...
, and rebuilt on both occasions. It was particularly connected with the Silesian mystic
Angelus Silesius
Angelus Silesius, Order of Friars Minor, OFM (9 July 1677), born Johann Scheffler, was a German Roman Catholicism, Catholic priest, physician, Mysticism, mystic and Christian poetry, religious poet. Born and raised a Lutheranism, Lutheran, he be ...
. From 1728 on the abbey church was rebuilt in a
Baroque
The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...
style, including several sculptures by
Ferdinand Brokoff
Ferdinand Maxmilian Brokoff (; 12 September 1688 – 8 March 1731) was a Czech sculptor and carver of the Baroque era.
Life and career
Brokoff was born in Červený Hrádek in the Kingdom of Bohemia (today part of Jirkov in the Czech Republic), ...
as well as paintings by
Petr Brandl and
Michael Willmann. With most of Silesia, ''Grüssau'' was conquered by King
Frederick II of Prussia
Frederick II (; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was the monarch of Prussia from 1740 until his death in 1786. He was the last Hohenzollern monarch titled ''King in Prussia'', declaring himself '' King of Prussia'' after annexing Royal Prus ...
in 1742 and finally
secularised in 1810 during the
Napoleonic Wars
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Napoleonic Wars
, partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars
, image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg
, caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
. The church became a parish church and the remaining premises were used for various governmental purposes within the Prussian
Province of Silesia
The Province of Silesia (; ; ) was a province of Prussia from 1815 to 1919. The Silesia region was part of the Prussian realm since 1742 and established as an official province in 1815, then became part of the German Empire in 1871. In 1919, as ...
.
After
World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, when the
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany, the country of the Germans and German things
**Germania (Roman era)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
monks of the
Emmaus Abbey in
Prague
Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
, Czechoslovakia were obliged to leave the city, they resettled in 1919 in the empty monastery buildings at Grüssau, then part of
Weimar Germany
The Weimar Republic, officially known as the German Reich, was the German Reich, German state from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional republic for the first time in history; hence it is also referred to, and unofficially proclai ...
. It was again raised to an abbey by
Pope Pius XI
Pope Pius XI (; born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, ; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939) was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 until his death in February 1939. He was also the first sovereign of the Vatican City State u ...
in 1924, the monastery was however suspended by the
Nazi government
The government of Nazi Germany was a totalitarian dictatorship governed by Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party according to the . Nazi Germany was established in January 1933 with the appointment of Adolf Hitler as Chancellor of Germany, followed ...
in 1940 and the buildings seized as a detention camp. During the
bombing of Berlin from 1942 on, large parts of the
Berlin State Library
The Berlin State Library (; officially abbreviated as ''SBB'', colloquially ''Stabi'') is a universal library in Berlin, Germany, and a property of the German public cultural organization the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation ().
Founded in ...
collection were outhoused at the abbey. Those documents include some of the earliest known
species illustrations by European
naturalists
Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...
including, among others,
Georg Marcgrave
Georg Marcgrave (originally , also spelled ''"Marcgraf" "Markgraf"'') (1610 – 1644) was a German naturalist and astronomer, whose posthumously published ''Historia Naturalis Brasiliae'' was a major contribution to early modern science.
Life
B ...
(Marcgraf) and botanist
Ferdinand Bauer
Ferdinand Lucas Bauer (20 January 1760 – 17 March 1826) was an Austrian botanical illustrator who travelled on Matthew Flinders' expedition to Australia.
Biography Early life and career
Bauer was born in Feldsberg in 1760, the youngest son ...
. This collection was stored at the abbey during World War II, and remained missing for over 30 years.
The territory became part of Poland according to the 1945
Potsdam Agreement
The Potsdam Agreement () was the agreement among three of the Allies of World War II: the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Soviet Union after the war ended in Europe that was signed on 1 August 1945 and published the following day. A ...
. Although the monastery was returned to the monks after the end of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, as ethnic Germans they were
expelled in accordance to the Potsdam Agreement by the Soviet-installed Polish communist government shortly afterwards on 12 May 1946. In 1946 a mysterious convoy called at the monastery and loaded thousands of manuscripts — autographed scores of
Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...
(¼ of his known music),
Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...
,
Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach (German: �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety of instruments and forms, including the or ...
and other composers — and disappeared. Several volumes were restored to
East Germany
East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...
in 1965, the remaining ''
Berlinka'' collection at the Cracow
Jagiellonian University
The Jagiellonian University (, UJ) is a public research university in Kraków, Poland. Founded in 1364 by Casimir III the Great, King Casimir III the Great, it is the oldest university in Poland and one of the List of oldest universities in con ...
and its status as "
looted art
Looted art has been a consequence of looting during war, natural disaster and riot for centuries. Looting of art, archaeology and other cultural property may be an opportunistic criminal act or may be a more organized case of Crime, unlawful or u ...
" is still a matter of dispute.
In 1947 Krzeszów Abbey was resettled by Polish Benedictine nuns expelled from
Lviv
Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...
(Lwów) in pre-war
eastern Poland annexed by the Soviet Union.
Baden-Württemberg

In 1947 the expelled community under Abbot Albert Schmitt purchased the former ''Ritterstift'' (collegiate foundation or canonry) around the
Gothic monastery church of
Saint Peter
Saint Peter (born Shimon Bar Yonah; 1 BC – AD 64/68), also known as Peter the Apostle, Simon Peter, Simeon, Simon, or Cephas, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus and one of the first leaders of the Jewish Christian#Jerusalem ekklēsia, e ...
in Bad Wimpfen, that had been abandoned since its secularisation in 1803, and became known as Kloster Bad Wimpfen. The last abbot, Laurentius Hoheisel, resigned in 1997. As the membership of the community had declined too far for it to be legally independent, it has been directed since 2001 by the abbot of
Neuburg Abbey near
Heidelberg
Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...
.
By the autumn of 2006 no monks remained, the last having moved to Neuburg, although Kloster Bad Wimpfen still remains nominally a Benedictine monastery and is still a member of the
Beuron Congregation within the
Benedictine Confederation
The Benedictine Confederation of the Order of Saint Benedict () is the international governing body of the Order of Saint Benedict.
Origin
The Benedictine Confederation is a union of monastic congregations that nevertheless retain their own aut ...
. A small community (consisting at the end of 2006 of a priest and a layman) maintain the facilities as a Benedictine guest house and venue for retreats, under the management of Neuburg Abbey.
Gallery
Krzeszow 04.jpg, Basilica of the Assumption
Krzeszow bazylika Wniebowziecia NMP 08.jpg, Basilica interior
Krzeszów kościół św. Józefa DSC 0205-1.JPG, Saint Joseph church
A 2056 913 z 31.07.1961 Kościół pomocniczy św. Józefa Krzeszów 7.jpg, Saint Joseph church interior
204 A 04 1-13 z 12.01.2004 zespół budowli klasztoru Krzeszów 6.jpg, Monastery building
592202 dolnośląskie Krzeszów Dom Opata 1.JPG, Abbot House
References
External links
Friends of Grüssau AbbeyFotoKrzeszow View of the abbey from the droneVirtual Tour{{Authority control
1242 establishments in Europe
13th-century establishments in Poland
Baroque church buildings in Poland
Burial sites of the Piast dynasty
Christian monasteries established in the 1240s
History of Silesia
Cistercian monasteries in Poland
Kamienna Góra County