Usedom Abbey (german: Kloster Usedom) was a medieval

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 ...

monastery on the isle of

Usedom Usedom (german: Usedom , pl, Uznam ) is a Baltic Sea island in Pomerania, divided between Germany and Poland. It is the second largest Pomeranian island after Rügen, and the most populous island in the Baltic Sea. It is north of the Szczecin ...

(

Western Pomerania Historical Western Pomerania, also called Cispomerania, Fore Pomerania, Front Pomerania or Hither Pomerania (german: Vorpommern), is the western extremity of the historic region of Pomerania forming the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, Weste ...

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 ...

) near the town of Usedom. It was founded in Grobe and later moved to nearby

Pudagla Pudagla is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Geography and Transport Pudagla is located between the Achterwasser lagoon about 1500 metres to the west, the Schmollensee lake directly to t ...

, and is thus also known as Grobe Abbey (german: Kloster Grobe) or Pudagla Abbey (german: Kloster Pudagla) respectively. The abbey was founded by the Pomeranian duke Ratibor I and his wife, Pribislawa, in the course of the

conversion of Pomerania Medieval Pomerania was converted from Slavic paganism to Christianity by Otto von Bamberg in 1124 and 1128 (Duchy of Pomerania), and in 1168 by Absalon (Principality of Rügen). Earlier attempts at Christianization, undertaken since the 10th ce ...

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

. The exact foundation date is uncertain, but it is assumed that it was about 1155, after the foundation of Stolpe Abbey in 1153 and before Ratibor's death. The first written record is the confirmation of the abbey by the Pomeranian bishop

Adalbert Adalbert is a German given name which means "noble bright" or "noble shining", derived from the words ''adal'' (meaning noble) and ''berht'' (shining or bright). Alternative spellings include Adelbart, Adelbert and Adalberto. Derivative names inclu ...

of 8 June 1159, which at the same time is the oldest known Pomeranian document. The site of Grobe Abbey has been archaeologically determined to be ''Priesterkamp'' hill in the town of

. The monks first came from

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; nds, label=Low Saxon, Meideborg ) is the capital and second-largest city of the German state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is situated at the Elbe river. Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archdiocese of Magdebur ...

, later from

Havelberg Havelberg () is a town in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the Havel, and part of the town is built on an island in the centre of the river. The two parts were incorporated as a town in 1875. It has a populati ...

. Shortly after its foundation, Grobe Abbey functioned as the temporary seat of the Pomeranian diocese, before its move to Cammin (Kammin, Kamien) in 1175. In 1307/09, the abbey was relocated to nearby Pudagla.Gesellschaft für Pommersche Geschichte, Altertumskunde und Kunst, Stettin, Historische Kommission für Pommern, ''Baltische Studien 83-85'', C. von der Ropp, 1997, p.10 After the

Protestant 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 ...

, the abbey was secularized into a ducal domain, and from the late 16th century was a refuge for ducal widows.

References

{{coord, 53.862448625, N, 13.9262008667, E, source:dewiki_region:DE-MV_type:landmark, format=dms, display=title 1150s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1155 establishments in Europe Christian monasteries established in the 12th century Premonstratensian monasteries in Germany Monasteries in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania History of Pomerania History of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Usedom

See also

References