St. Boniface's Abbey () is a

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

monastery in

Maxvorstadt Maxvorstadt (Central Bavarian: ''Maxvorstod'') is a central borough of Munich, Bavaria, Germany and forms the Stadtbezirk (borough) 3 Maxvorstadt. Since 1992, this borough comprises the former boroughs 5, 6 and 7 (Maxvorstadt-Universität, Maxvor ...

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. It was founded in 1835 by King

Ludwig I of Bavaria Ludwig I or Louis I (; 25 August 1786 – 29 February 1868) was King of Bavaria from 1825 until the German revolutions of 1848–49, 1848 revolutions in the German states. When he was crown prince, he was involved in the Napoleonic Wars. As ki ...

, as a part of his efforts to reanimate the country's spiritual life by the restoration of the monasteries destroyed during the

secularisation In sociology, secularization () is a multilayered concept that generally denotes "a transition from a religious to a more worldly level." There are many types of secularization and most do not lead to atheism or irreligion, nor are they automatica ...

of the early 19th century. The abbey, constructed in

Byzantine style Byzantine architecture is the architecture of the Byzantine Empire, or Eastern Roman Empire, usually dated from 330 AD, when Constantine the Great established a new Roman capital in Byzantium, which became Constantinople, until the fall of the ...

, was formally dedicated in 1850. It was destroyed during

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 ...

and only partly restored. The church contains the tombs of King Ludwig I and of his queen,

Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen Therese Charlotte Luise of Saxony-Hildburghausen (8 July 1792 – 26 October 1854) was queen of Bavaria as the wife of King Ludwig I. Oktoberfest was created in honour of their wedding and is still celebrated annually on Theresienwiese in Mu ...

. St. Boniface's is situated in a city, which is unusual for a Benedictine monastery. To ensure the material provision of the monks, King Ludwig bought the former

Andechs Abbey Andechs Abbey is a Benedictine monastery, now a priory but formerly an abbey, in the municipality of Andechs, in the Starnberg (district), ''Landkreis'' of Starnberg, Upper Bavaria, Germany. A place of pilgrimage on a hill east of the Ammersee, t ...

, which had been secularised in 1803, along with its supporting farmlands and gave it to the new abbey. For this reason Andechs is now a priory of St. Boniface's Abbey. The monks work in the pastoral care of the parish, in scholarly and educational fields and in the care of the homeless. The present abbot (as of 2014) is Johannes Eckert, whom the monks elected on 23 July 2003 on the retirement of the previous abbot, Odilo Lechner. St. Boniface's Abbey is a member of the

Bavarian Congregation The Bavarian Congregation is a congregation of the Benedictine Confederation consisting (with one exception) of monasteries in Bavaria, Germany. It was founded on 26 August 1684 by Pope Innocent XI (1676-1689). First Congregation Until the secula ...

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 ...

Abbots

* Paulus Birker (1850–1854) * Bonifaz Haneberg (1854–1872) * Benedikt Zenetti (1872–1904) * Gregor Danner (1904–1919) * Bonifaz Wöhrmüller (1919–1951) * Hugo Lang (1951–1967) * Odilo Lechner (coadjutor 1964–1967; abbot 1967–2003) * Johannes Eckert (2013-)

References

Sources

* Lebendige Steine. St. Bonifaz in München. 150 Jahre Benediktinerabtei und Pfarrei. Eine Ausstellung der Benediktinerabtei St. Bonifaz München und Andechs und des Bayerischen Hauptstaatsarchivs zum 150. Jubiläum der Gründung durch König Ludwig I. München 2000 (Ausstellungskataloge der Staatlichen Archive Bayerns; 42) 'exhibition catalogue produced by the Bavarian State Archives for the 150th anniversary of the abbey's foundation''

External links

St. Boniface's website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boniface Religious organizations established in 1835 1835 establishments in Bavaria Christian monasteries established in the 19th century Roman Catholic churches in Munich Benedictine monasteries in Germany Monasteries in Bavaria Tourist attractions in Munich Neoclassical architecture in Munich Byzantine Revival architecture in Germany Cultural heritage monuments in Munich Neoclassical church buildings in Germany Ludwig I of Bavaria