Cismar Abbey

The Cismar was from 1245 to 1561 a Benedictine monastery in Cismar, community Grömitz in Schleswig -Holstein and in the summer serves today as a branch of the National Museum of Schleswig-Holstein for art exhibitions.

  • 2.4.1 Seal

Current stage of construction

The building is built in the style of Brick Gothic, besides, numerous bricks were specially made for the future use. It consists of a nave today without high church tower. The former lay in the west section was separated and rebuilt in the style of the Baroque as a residence of the bailiff. This section is used today as a branch of the National Museum of Schleswig-Holstein for art exhibitions during the summer. More one-story buildings surround the square courtyard in the east and south, outlines of the cloister are indicated by stone markers. The western part is no longer maintained. The Western Front is designed as a stepped gable. Excavations have revealed in 1965 that the original building was substantially enlarged in 1320. The entire complex is surrounded by a moat and earthen walls.

Historical Overview

The St. John's Monastery in Cismar was not reestablished, but moved from Lübeck from 1245 after Cismar. The Lübeck Convention had always had lands in East Holstein. When the abbey was laid, there was no other place except Cismar in question.

From the beginnings to the secularization

1177, after the transfer of the bishopric of Oldenburg to Lübeck, Lübeck appointed Bishop Henry I of Brussels Benedictine monks from Brunswick in the city and dedicated a monastery there, the St. John's Abbey. Presumably, under Abbot John I. daughters and widows of Lübeck patrician were taken as nuns. Canon law did not tolerate the coexistence of monks and nuns in a convent. There were complaints about the abuses in the double monastery, the monks did not behaving inside and outside the monastery as monks. The Benedictine monks had then difficulties to lead a life corresponding to the rules of the order.

No later than 1230, the confrontation began at the laying of the Convention from Lübeck to Cismar. In a deed dated October 25, 1231 by Count Adolf IV was reported by a transfer of St. John monastery after Cicimeresthorp in eastern barely Christianized Peninsula Wagrien on arrangement. The displacement of the monk Convention was not without its difficulties to do, because there was a legal dispute over the legality of the transfer. Abbot Johann I and a part of the Convention in 1245 undergone by Cismar and there began the new monastery assemble. The conflict ended in March 1256th

The Cismarer Convention was never numerically large. Specific details but it is made only for the 14th and 15th centuries. In a deed dated May 21, 1325 notarize except Wiprecht Abbot and Prior John II 18 monks still a sale. When the Convention was still greater, but certainly not much. 1328 were called Abbot John VIII and 16 monks, while in 1346 next to the abbot John XI. 13 monks were. From a document of 1361 it can be seen that during the plague epidemic, a part of the monastery inmates had died of the plague.

After connecting to the Bursfeld Congregation 1502 25 monks and 1513 still 21 monks were listed in documents. The deed dated December 16, 1502 is so far the only evidence for a list of names of all the monks present in the local monastery. The Connection document of the monastery Cismar comes from the October 13, 1449, the Lübeck Bishop, Arnold Westphal announced on October 8, 1451 his consent to this connector. The monastery was granted in 1502 by the papal legate, Cardinal Raymond Peraudi, Bishop of Gurk, the cheers drain.

Narrated nine received from Cismar monastery Bruderschaftsveträge, two of which date from the period before the transfer to Cismar. 1283 renewed the monastery a Brotherhood contract with the Aegidienkloster in Braunschweig and 1290 with the Ratzeburg cathedral chapter. The most significant agreement was concluded on 9 October 1301 to the Benedictine monastery at the Peene Stolpe in Pomerania. The monastery Bordesholm Cismar closed on October 1, 1389 a treaty of friendship which also the Cismarer Convention gave a preponderance.

The Benedictine monastery Preetz placed himself at times for the lead in spiritual and economic matters monks from Cismar. Since there was no other monastery of the Benedictine Order in the Diocese of Lübeck, Lübeck next to the bishop, the abbot of Cismar was the superior spiritual authority. They were also responsible for the appointment of the monastery provost. So were two provosts Cismarer monks in the monastery Preetz. From 1275 to 1285 Conrad was provost there, under him the church was built. From 1491 was a monk Hermann Kulpin only a year provost, he could not due to inability to conduct meaningful the local big economic operation.

In the first half of the 15th century, the monastery was leaning against his diocesan bishop and tried to reach the exemption before the Council of Basle, but failed. The then from the Lübeck Bishop Johannes Schele filed with the Council of Basle petition in which he wished to support the Cismarer Abbot Thomas Lunow was decided on June 1, 1436 in his favor. The council found that the monastery was subjected to the Bishopric of Lübeck in particular, and must obey. It succeeded the bishop not to let the abbot to settle, when the Convention was on the side of the abbot. The Cismarer abbot was still ordained neither by the bishop of his representative. The relationship to the Lübeck Bishop chair did not improve in later years.

The Cismarer Abbot Walter Vechel 1498 by Pope Alexander VI. repeatedly used as a Visitor and reformer of the Benedictine order in the Mecklenburg monasteries Dobbertin and Rühn to remove the torn in the local monasteries disorder.

Economic conditions

Through the sale of the village Sycima ( Cismar ) 1237 to the monks of St. John's Convent in Lübeck created Count Adolf IV of Holstein an important prerequisite for the monastery laying. Was the economic basis for the monastery from the beginning relatively good, as it had in its possession Wagrien, so close to the later monastery Cismar systematically expanded its already in Lübeck years and rounded. In the 13th and 14th centuries report the deeds of pious foundations and relics donations, complaints and dispute resolution, as well as pensions and real estate transactions. Their goal was consistently expanding the properties in Cismar.

The Cismar neighboring village Grömitz acquired the monks in 1322 by the Lords of Westensee. Count Johann III. of Holstein gave the monks the patronage of the church in Gromitz, in 1400 they incorporated the abbey.

1325 had the Cismar one directly to the monastery upstream port, 22 full and two half villages in nearby monastery, 12 mills, lakes and fish ponds. In addition to two mills in Cismar monks had also the dam Husener mill west of Wismar in their possession. The extensive land holdings in Lauenburg more villages and float were added in rapid succession in Mecklenburg. In the years 1303-1321 the monastery bought in addition to the already existing villages Krempin and Schmakentin another ten possessions west and east of Wismar added until 1318 then three farmsteads from Councillor John de Crkow to Wismar in the Vogt pit, today's Claus- Jesup street in Wismar and to 1321 pieces and entire villages on the island of Poel.

The Cismarer monks promoted significantly the development of the wagrischen country and established an extensive service arms. The monastery had acquired his possessions in Holstein almost exclusively with the high and low jurisdiction. In the plague years around 1350, the country often could not be managed, as many tenants died, fled or duties refused. In the late 14th century the monastery expanded its land already off again. New setbacks brought the fighting to the Duchy of Schleswig between the Danish kings and the Holstein counts in the 15th century as a monastery and owned by the accretion Eric of Pomerania in Wagrien were devastated.

Buildings

About the beginning and progress of the construction of the church and monastery nothing is handed down. A first monastery church, the device is due to the rather worse for wear from Lübeck monks to be set around 1245, was extended to the east nave 1260-1300 out by two yokes of polygonal choir conclusion. The 1965-1970 conducted historical architectural investigations revealed that the four-bay west part of the first church was rebuilt in the 14th century. A Hallenlettner separated this part of the monk choir. The total length of the nave, vaulted building is 62 meters. The choir conclusion is quite impressive in the simple size of the forms lübischer early Gothic.

In order to provide the great treasure of relics of the monastery adequate to show, an elaborate, art-historically significant three-blade high altar shrine was erected 1310-1320 in the choir. The five deep niches in the central part of the altarpiece, formerly subdivided by Borte, show in 15 fields motifs from the life of Jesus. The right wing of scenes from the life of Benedict and in the left wing of the legend of John the Evangelist, patron of the monastery are shown. Some figures are believed to have originated as early as 1250. The wooden carved bas-reliefs still bear the original color version. The altar is attributed to the same workshop as the Bocholt stalls in the Lübeck Cathedral, he probably was created by Hermann Walther von Kolberg and his workshop. He is the oldest known in the history of art carved.

Over 800 valuable relics such as a drop of blood of Christ, a thorn of his crown, which was given to the Bishop of Lübeck by Henry II, and the sacred source on the Klostergrund the monastery made ​​it an important place of pilgrimage. This also meant revenue on a grand scale. Due to the plague and as a result of armed conflict between the Danish king and the nobility holstein pilgrimages declined, the income from the land were no longer sufficient for the maintenance of the monastery. On May 23, 1432 Pope Eugene IV was asked to provide support for the maintenance.

Of the monastic buildings, the church and part of the refectory has been preserved. Much of the church was transformed by alterations in a residence. The cloister can be detected by still visible arc approaches and consoles.

Dissolution of the monastery

In the wake of the Lutheran Reformation, the denial of the authenticity of the relics by the Bishop of Lübeck took place. This meant that the importance waned as a place of pilgrimage. The decline of the monastery continued, but on the actual impact in Cismar Monastery little is known. At the Diet to Rendsburg on March 9, 1542 adoption of the Protestant church order was decided. The monastery was visitiert 1542 by Bishop Nicholas Sachow of Lübeck and fell at the country's division in 1544 to Duke Adolf of Holstein- Gottorp, which began Joachim von Rantzau as bailiff.

The monastic community was initially continued. Around 1560, the monastery was abandoned and later converted into a splendid castle country. The last recorded by the Abbot Augustine document dates of December 20, 1559 the decision of the abbot approved Duke Adolf until 2 December 1560th The removal was completed in 1561. The Cismarer courtyard of the monastery Cismar in Lübeck was sold in 1563.

Johannes Stricker became the first Protestant pastor in Cismar and introduced in Cismar in autumn 1561 by the bailiff of the convent. Stricker was expelled in 1572 from Hostein and went to Lübeck, where he died in 1599. The first Protestant clergyman Grömitzer Patronatskirche was Andreas Grote, 1559 was a life-long living right there. On January 28, 1561 Benedict was used by Ahlefeldt as bailiff, and in the same year 1561 the monastery was finally secularized and converted the monastery area in an office. As Abbot Augustine has probably been in the old age and the Convention yielded to protest the closure of the monastery seemed to have gone smoothly place without escape or expulsion.

Abbots of Cismar

Names and dates refer to the documented detectable mention as Dept.

Priors of Cismar

Names and dates refer to the documented detectable mention as Prior

Seal

The seal of the convent Cismarer shows a backward -looking, flying up eagle, the symbol of John the Evangelist, was under the patronage Cismar. In its talons the eagle holds a banner with the opening words of the Jonannesevangeliums: IN PRINCIPIO ERAT VERBUM. The definition is: S S CONVENTUS IOANIS EEC I SICIMER The seal comes from a document of the Bishopric of Lübeck on 22 June 1305 Eutin.

After the dissolution of the monastery

After the dissolution of the monastic community whose property fell in 1561 to the Duke Gottorfer line who renovated the building into a castle with farm estate. A further reconstruction took place in 1768 with the separation and the imposition of a suspended ceiling in the western part of the church. The building served as the seat of the bailiff. After that, the monastery serves as a barn for a long time, bailiff apartment, off site of the Kiel University Library in World War II, refugee dormitory, hostel, school - until it began to deteriorate.

Famous is the large and rich monastery library, which first came to Schloss Gottorp and have been transported to 1712 in the Danish Royal Library in Copenhagen, where can today prove 110 Latin manuscripts and 149 incunabula from Cismar.

Further use

Since 1987, the Cismar has become the cultural branch of the Foundation Schleswig -Holstein state museums after extensive restoration and expansion from 1982. Here you will find changing exhibitions of national importance, in the winter months in the vaulted hall high profile concert events of the conveyance Cismar eV Far beyond the country's borders known is the monastery hard Cismar on the second weekend in August, a nostalgic craft market rather demanding expression with about 150 market feeders and 60,000 - 80,000 visitors per year. 25% of the eV generated by the Sponsoring Cismar surplus flow to the Foundation Schleswig -Holstein state museums for use in Cismar, the remaining part in the conservation and development of the monastery and into the cultural revival of the monastery island (concerts, readings, cultural prizes, etc.).

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