Pöhlde Abbey was a

Premonstratensian The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular of the Catholic Church ...

(previously

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 ...

) monastery at

Pöhlde Pöhlde is a village in southern Lower Saxony in Germany. It is part of the town Herzberg am Harz. It has a population of 2207 (1 October 2006). Archaeological excavation has revealed traces of settlement dating to the 2nd through 4th centuries AD. ...

, now a small village and part of the town of

Herzberg am Harz Herzberg am Harz is a town in the Göttingen district of Lower Saxony, Germany. Geography Herzberg is situated on the southwestern rim of the Harz mountain range and the Harz National Park. Natural monuments in the surrounding area include the ...

, in

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

History

The lands of Pöhlde were given in

dower Dower is a provision accorded traditionally by a husband or his family, to a wife for her support should she become widowed. It was settled on the bride (being gifted into trust) by agreement at the time of the wedding, or as provided by law. ...

in c 927 to Queen Matilda by her husband,

Henry I the Fowler Henry the Fowler (german: Heinrich der Vogler or '; la, Henricus Auceps) (c. 876 – 2 July 936) was the Duke of Saxony from 912 and the King of East Francia from 919 until his death in 936. As the first non- Frankish king of East Francia, he ...

(d. 936). This is the earliest-written record of the place. Dedicated to

Saint John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

and

Saint Servatius Saint Servatius ( nl, Sint Servaas; french: Saint Servais; li, Sintervaos; hy, Սուրբ Սերվատիոս ''Surb Servatios'') (born in Armenia, died in Maastricht, traditionally on 13 May 384) was bishop of Tongeren —Latin: ''Atuatuca ...

, the abbey was founded in 952 by Matilda and received generous endowments from her son,

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 Frankish king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the oldest son of He ...

. It benefited greatly from its close connection to the imperial palace then also situated at Pöhlde, and for a time was one of the wealthiest monasteries in Germany. The foundation was originally for

Canons regular Canons regular are priests who live in community under a rule ( and canon in greek) and are generally organised into religious orders, differing from both secular canons and other forms of religious life, such as clerics regular, designated by a ...

, but it adopted the

Rule of St. Benedict The ''Rule of Saint Benedict'' ( la, Regula Sancti Benedicti) is a book of precepts written in Latin in 516 by St Benedict of Nursia ( AD 480–550) for monks living communally under the authority of an abbot. The spirit of Saint Benedict's Ru ...

in 952. In 1131 it joined the

Premonstratensian Order The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular of the Catholic Church ...

. In 1200 the old Romanesque church burnt down. Its

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 ...

successor was consecrated in 1240. In 1525 both church and monastery were destroyed by peasants from

Eichsfeld The Eichsfeld ( or ; English: ''Oak-field'') is a historical region in the southeast of the state of Lower Saxony (which is called "Untereichsfeld" = lower Eichsfeld) and northwest of the state of Thuringia ("Obereichsfeld" = upper Eichsfeld) in th ...

in the

Peasants' War This is a chronological list of conflicts in which peasants played a significant role. Background The history of peasant wars spans over two thousand years. A variety of factors fueled the emergence of the peasant revolt phenomenon, including: ...

. The monks moved to

Duderstadt Duderstadt () is a city in southern Lower Saxony, Germany, located in the district of Göttingen. It is the center and capital of the northern part of the Eichsfeld ("Untereichsfeld"). In earlier times it was the private wealth of the Roman Cat ...

. In 1533 in 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 ...

Duke

Philip Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who popularize ...

of Grubenhagen dissolved the abbey and took over its property. In 1629 a brief attempt to revive the abbey ended in failure. Later 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 ...

what little remained on the site was completely destroyed. After the return of peace the present half-timbered village church was built on the foundations of the nave of the destroyed abbey church.

Present site

There are no visible traces of the abbey left. Between 1971 and 1974 the remains of the abbey were uncovered during archaeological excavations, but for their better preservation were covered over again. The remains of the palace, to which the abbey buildings were physically connected, were also excavated at about the same time, but were also covered over again.

References

* Heine, H.-W., 1995. ''Frühe Burgen und Pfalzen in Niedersachsen''. Hildesheim. * Zander, O., 1983. ''Historische Streifzüge durch den Südharz''. Herzberg.

External links

*
Website of the municipality of Pöhlde
(includes information on the abbey and the palace) {{DEFAULTSORT:Pohlde Abbey Benedictine monasteries in Germany Premonstratensian monasteries in Germany Monasteries in Lower Saxony Religious buildings and structures completed in 952 Christian monasteries established in the 10th century Abbeys and churches in the Harz Roman Catholic churches in Lower Saxony