St. George's Abbey, Isny

The monastery of St. George in Isny was founded in 1096 by Benedictine monks and was as imperial abbey until the secularization in 1802.

History

The Monastery of St. George was founded in 1096 by the Earl of Altshausen - Veringen and collected in the same year to the Abbey. 1106, the foundation was confirmed by Pope Paschal II. Towards the end of the 12th century, a Benedictine monastery was established in Isny ​​, but this was postponed to 1189 after Rohrsdorf.

From the monastery of St. George founded the city Isny went out, which was expanded in the late 12th century as a market settlement. 1281, King Rudolf von Habsburg, at the behest of his close friend Henry of Isny the place the Lindau municipal law.

After the economic prosperity the monastery passed away almost completely out in the plague of 1350.

During the Reformation, the city Isny was Protestant. 1534, there was an iconoclasm of the abbey.

The economic situation of the abbey only improved in the first third of the 17th century. A second economic boom began under Abbot Alfonso Torelli ( term 1701-1731 ) in the 18th century.

It was not until 1781 reached the monastery the complete freedom Vogt and reached the rank of an imperial state. The Monastery of St. George belonged first to the Rhineland kingdom prelate College and was a member of the Swabian kingdom after 1792 prelate College.

With the secularization of 1803, the monastery of St. George and the city Isny fell to Count Otto Wilhelm von Quadt - Wykradt. The monastery then served as Gräfliches castle. During the Third Reich the Hitler Youth until 1943 was housed there. Later, the system was used until 1996 as a geriatric hospital and nursing home.

Architectural History

The first monastery and the Romanesque church burned down in 1284. Immediately after the fire a hall church was rebuilt and consecrated in 1288. In the first third of the 17th century, numerous premises were rebuilt or newly built, but they were destroyed in a devastating fire in 1631.

To built 1656 Michael Beer baroque new construction and assembled parts of the destroyed monastery repaired.

The existing today monastery church built Giulio Barbieri from 1660 to 1666. The onion dome followed until 1709. Johann Georg Applies ( Wessobrunner school) and Johann Michael Holzhey created 1757/58 a refurbishing of the church in the rococo style.