Himmelkron Abbey () is located in Himmelkron in the district of Kulmbach in Upper Franconia, Bavaria, Germany. From the 13th to the 16th century it was a Cistercian abbey in the Archdiocese of Bamberg. It then served the Margraviate of Brandenburg-Bayreuth as a summer residence and Jagdschloss until the 19th century. Today it is a residential home and day care center for people with intellectual disabilities.
The originally Gothic abbey church was baroqueized in the 17th and 18th centuries. Today the collegiate church of St. Mary is an evangelical lutheran parish church. Of the other buildings of the abbey, only one wing of the Gothic cloister has been preserved; the present buildings date mainly from the 16th to 18th centuries. The entire building complex is entered in the Bavarian list of monuments as both an architectural monumentBaudenkmal Kloster Himmelkron beim Bayerischen Landesamt für Denkmalpflege and an archaeological monument.
History
Foundation
The abbey was founded in 1279 by Count Otto III (IV) of Weimar-Orlamünde. Through his mother Beatrix, the Orlamünde had received from the inheritance of the Andechs-Meranians the dominion of Plassenburg, to which the village of Pretzendorf also belonged. Otto had Pretzendorf castle converted into an abbey. In addition to the castle and the village of Pretzendorf, Otto gave the abbey the surrounding fields, meadows and forests as well as the villages of Hardt, Nemhards and Boschendorf. The area belonged to the Bamberg diocese, whose bishop at that time was Berthold von Leiningen.
The foundation deed of 28 December 1279Zinck: Himmelkron, S. 5. In dem Stiftungsbrief ist das Datum mit „innocentium martyrum MCCLXXX“ angegeben, also 28. Dezember (Tag der unschuldigen Kinder) 1280. Da damals das Jahr jedoch im Advent bzw. an Weihnachten begann, entspricht das nach heutigem Kalender dem 28. Dezember 1279. states as the purpose of the foundation that Otto wanted to hand down his memory to posterity and do something for the salvation of his soul. The foundation letter also mentions the name Himmelkron for the new abbey. However, the transfer of this name to the village of Pretzendorf did not take place until the 16th century. In addition to representatives of the local nobility, personalities who clearly show the connection to the monasteries of Sonnefeld and Langheim are listed as witnesses. These included the founder of the Sonnefeld abbey Heinrich II von Sonneberg, the magister Brother Gottfried from Sonnefeld and the abbot of Langheim Abbey, who continued to accompany the development of the Himmelkron abbey as a visitator.
The first nuns of the newly established abbeys probably came from Sonnefeld Abbey, the nearest branch of the Cistercian nuns.Meißner: Stiftskirche…, p. 2. Tradition names Otto's daughter Agnes as the first abbess. However, because of the long period between the foundation of the abbey in 1279 and her death in 1354, and because Agnes is not mentioned in the foundation letter, it is assumed that there was at least one other abbess or prioress in the early days of the abbey.Zinck: Himmelkron, p. 2.
Further development For the period from 1398 to 1547, the landlordship of the abbey can be recorded as a nearby scattered estate.Meißner: Himmelkron, p. 22. It extended in the south into the Bayreuth area and bordered in the southeast on the Warme Steinach. While in the southeast the Red Main formed another natural border, there were possessions in the surroundings of Thurnau beyond that. In the north, the landlordship ended at the Schorgast. In the northeast there were possessions in Stammbach, Mussen and up to the Hof area.
The history of the abbey can mostly only be traced through war events or major building activities of the abbesses. In 1430, during the Hussite wars, the Hussites came to the area and, among other things, burned down nearby Kulmbach. However, no major damage to Himmelkron abbey has been recorded. Thus, no major reconstruction work was mentioned in the aftermath and many works of art survived the time. The abbesses Elisabeth von Künsberg (1460–1484) and Magdalena von Wirsberg (1499–1522) developed a lively building activity, of which armorial stones and inscriptions still bear witness. Elizabeth's most important building project was probably the construction of the cloister with its many artistic elements in 1473. Magdalena extended the abbey church by a wing. These two building phases were interrupted by the time of Margaret von Zedtwitz (1484–1499), when the abbey suffered from difficult economic conditions. Abbey buildings became ruinous and the cultivation of the lands succeeded only incompletely. The part of the Margraviate of Brandenburg-Kulmbach called Oberland was less affected by the Peasants' War from 1524. Apparently some rebels gathered in Bayreuth, but the damage to the abbey, e.g. the theft of a silver cross, remained minor, and no persons were harmed. Also in the Second Margrave War, looting resulted only in some losses from the inventory.
Downfall
In the time of abbess Apollonia von Waldenfels, the Reformation moved into the region and found favor among the population and the clergy. Margrave George, an early follower of Martin Luther, forced conversions to Protestantism and allowed a forcible expulsion of nuns from Himmelkron and Hof unless they accepted the new denomination. The Bamberg bishop Weigand of Redwitz lodged a complaint about this with the Swabian League in 1529. However, the development could not be stopped. The margrave-friendly preacher Johannes Behaim, who was appointed in Himmelkron, criticized Abbess Apollonia and Prioress Dorothea von Wirsberg from the pulpit.
The last abbess of Himmelskron, Margarethe von Döhlau, was appointed in 1544 under Albrecht II. Alcibiades. This gave the margrave the opportunity to impose conditions on the abbess for her conduct of office and to gain insight into life in the abbey and its furnishings. As early as 1545 Margarethe was deposed as abbess and provided with a pension. The income of the abbey was now to be used to maintain Princess Barbara (died 17 June 1591), a cousin of Albrecht who had previously stayed at the Heilsbronn abbey. In 1548 Margarethe was reinstated as abbess; she converted to Protestantism. The number of nuns decreased to two by 1560. Margarethe eventually converted part of the convent into a school for noble girls. The school existed only until the end of the 16th century, and at last it also accepted commoners and boys.
Abbesses
Lists of the abbesses of Himmelkron abbey were compiled by Johann E. TeichmannTeichmann: Historische Beschreibung… , Cap. XV u. XVI in 1739 and by Pastor Theodor ZinckZinck: Himmelkron pp. 16–32. in 1925. Both named 16 abbesses and began their list with Agnes von Weimar-Orlamünde.
There are sparse references to further abbesses, their names are partly unsecured. Thus Wielandnach Zinck: Himmelkron, pp. 18f. was able to name a "Lawke" and a "Leukardis", who succeeded Katharina von Schaumberg according to parish registers, in a document of 27 June 1401. In the founding phase of the abbey it can be assumed that another abbess or administrator was already active before the minor Agnes. Similar to the tradition of the founding period of the Hof abbey, the focus on Agnes as the last member of the family group could have originated. Wieland mentions from a document of the Sonnefeld abbey from 15 September 1287, a "Rihze" and for 1357, thus after the death of Agnes, a "Reitzgk II."Meißner: Himmelkron, p. 23.
The abbesses came from local noble families, the ruling Counts of Orlamünde and the Burgraviate of Nuremberg who succeeded them. Thus there are parallels to the development of the nearby Clarissan abbey of Hof, see List of abbott of Hof. +No.NameTerm of officeNotesEmblem1Agnes von Weimar-Orlamündeuntil 1354Agnes came from the family of the Counts of Weimar-Orlamünde. She was a daughter of Otto III (IV), the founder of the abbey. Her epitaph is in the church.2Kunigunde von Nothaftuntil 1370Kunigunde, also called Katharina, came from the family von Nothaft.3Anna von Nürnberg1370–1383Anna came from the family of the Franconian Hohenzollerns. She was the daughter of the Nuremberg Burgrave Johann II, who took over the rule of Plassenburg from the Counts of Orlamünde and thus also the abbey they founded. Her mother was Elisabeth von Henneberg († 1377), daughter of Berthold VII. Anna had previously been abbess in the Birkenfeld Abbey. Her epitaph is in the church.4Ruth von Mosbach-Lindenfelsafter 1383Ruth came from the Mosbach-Lindenfels family.5Agnes von Wallenrothuntil 1409Agnes came from the family of Wallenroth. Her epitaph is in the church.6Katharina Förtsch von Thurnau1409–1410Katharina came from the family of Förtsch von Thurnau.7Katharina Rieter1410Catherine came from the Rieter family. She died immediately after her appointment.8Katharina von Schaumberg1410–1411Catherine came from the von Schaumberg family.9Longa von Kotzau1411–1428According to the genealogist Alban von Dobeneck, Longa came from a branch von Kotzau family, which was propertied in Rehau and Leimitz and was founded by her father Goßwein. Another abbess of the family was Katharina von Kotzau in the nearby Clarissan Hof Abbey.10Adelheid von Plassenberg1428–1460Adelheid came from the family von Plassenberg. Her epitaph is located in the church.11Elisabeth von Künsberg1460–1484Elisabeth came from the family von Künsberg . She developed an active building activity, including the construction of the cloister. Her epitaph is located in the church.12Margareta von Zedtwitz1484–1499Margaret came from the family von Zedtwitz. Her epitaph is located in the church.13Magdalena von Wirsberg1499–1522Magdalena came from the family von Wirsberg. An inscription with her family coat of arms and the Redwitz coat of arms in the inner courtyard of the abbey testifies to her building activity from 1516. Her epitaph is in the church.14Ottilia Schenk von Siemau1522-1529Ottilia came from the family of Schenk von Siemau. Her epitaph is in the church.15Apollonia von Waldenfels1529-1543Apollonia came from the family von Waldenfels.16Margarethe von Döhlau1543-1569Margarethe, the last abbess of Himmelkron Abbey, came from the noble family of Dölau. With Abbess Veronika von Dölau, the von Dölau family was also represented in the nearby Clarissan Abbey Hof. Since Margarethe and with her the entire abbey had converted to Protestantism, her epitaph in the church depicts her with a crucifix as a sign of the new confession instead of the previously customary crosier. Only a few of the nuns are known by name. Like the abbesses, a good part of them also came from the noble families of the immediate vicinity. The family von Guttenberg is frequently represented, Dobeneck and Feilitzsch can be traced with one person each.
Later use The abbey church became a Protestant parish church in 1590. The abbey buildings served the Bayreuth margraves as Jagdschloss Himmelkron. Especially under Margrave Christian Ernst it was expanded and the cloister was partially destroyed in the process. Margrave George Wilhelm had the baroque Red Eagle Hall built, which is used by the Himmelkron parish for weddings and concerts.
In 1893, deaconesses from Neuendettelsau founded a "home for feeble-minded girls" in Himmelkron under the direction of Pastor Langheinrich. Today, the convent and the surrounding grounds house a residential home, a daycare center and a workshop for people with disabilities. The responsible body is the Diakonie Neuendettelsau.
The former nuns' choir was established as the Collegiate Church Museum.
Legends