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The abbey of Ettal
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The abbey of Ettal
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| The abbey of Ettal > The History of the monastery |
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INTRODUCTION Ettal, almost 900 meters above sea level, is located in a narrow mountain valley of the Western Alpine foothills. (map) Before the invention of the railroad, Ettal, although near one of the most important Alpine passes and on a connecting road between Augsburg and Italy, was off the beaten path and a three-and-a-half day trip to the capital city of the Duchy and Electorate of Bavaria. Nowadays one of the most travelled and most popular roads goes through Ettal. The large, castle-like grounds of the monastery are the result of a long historical development and demonstrates one of the main concerns of a Benedictine Abbey: An independent religious community which produces everything needed for life and thus has all the important workshops and undertakings, if possible within the confines of the monastery (and how could it have been otherwise with the ancient methods of transportation?). On the other hand a monastery in old Bavaria - and not only there - was incorporated into the system of the state and society and then since the late Middle Ages had jurisdiction over the legal system, administration and taxation probably comparable to a county administration nowadays. The baroque need for self-portrayal and representation materialized in the exterior form of the abbey grounds. These factors, of course, are now only a part of history, and today's monastic community in Ettal represents a special form of a Christian community within the Roman Catholic Church. Its style of life and its conception of itself, its inner structure and to a certain extent its exterior organization rests on the Rule of Saint Benedict of Nursia (died 547), which was written in the middle of the sixth century. St. Benedict is considered the Father of Western monasticsm and doistered life. This rule - a basically European document for spiritual and intellectual organization of life according to the Gospel and also for the fruitful organization of community life is still valid in its spirit and in its basic concepts for a Benedictine Abbey of today, even when it has to be adapted to the contemporary understanding of humanity and to the changed relationship between church and state. The Ettal religious community has consisted of approximately fifty to sixty members in recent years. In addition to its spiritual and ecclesiastical mission of Eucharistic Services and the Divine Office in common it maintains as its main activity a private high school with boarding school (approximately 420 pupils). It also conducts pastoral missions and activities. The economic basis of the abbey consists of that which the monks themselves produce and earn as well as of a number of undertakings such as a brewery, the making of liqueur, hotel, and publishing house. Through these activities the large complex of buildings - all of which are used - has to be kept up - for the most part by the monks themselves. THE HISTORY OF THE MONASTERY Compared to the large and important monasteries of the Middle Ages in Bavaria Ettal is of relatively recent
origin. It owes its foundation to the Duke of Bavaria, at the same time Roman Emperor of the German Nation, Kaiser Louis the
Fourth. He was called the "Bavarian", originally an abusive name of the pope for the emperor who was opposed to
him. According to tradition the motivation for the foundation is to be found in a vow which was common in the Middle
Ages, but also in motives stemming from imperial and territorial reasons. Thus the spiritual and mental realm as well as the very practical entered into a
union. The tradition of the foundation is richly connected with legend and
history, where as the Rome journey of the Emperor in 1328 gives the basis of it all. On the other hand there exists the visual document of the marble statue of the Ettal Madonna on the high altar of the church. In any case the Emperor did bring this statue back from his Italian
journey. The fact is that the Emperor was in a very precarious situation, both politically and
financially. He was banned by the pope and threatened by the North Italian
cities. In this situation the Emperor vowed to found Ettal.
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Even today the focal point of the monastery is the Madonna, a gift of the Emperor for his
foundation. The date of the endowment and foundation of Ettal is the 28th of April 1330. Along with the foundation of a community of monks there was also to be a community of knights and their wives connected to the
abbey, similar to the Teutonic Knights. This fact is important in as much as its builds the basis for the form of construction of the church back
then. This form is still existant, although it has been given a baroque facade. The
knights' foundation didn't prove itself to be viable; the monastery itself however had enough land and endowments so that is
survived, in spite of the fact that there were times when survival was
threatened. In the Middle Ages and into the 17th century Ettal was rather
unimportant, finding its actual zenith around 1700, whidh went hand in hand with the coming of the South German
baroque. After 1700 the pilgrimages, having their roots in the 15th century began to flourish and in 1709, after the economic situation of the monastery had been newly
organized, a school was founded, the so-called "Knights' Academy". This school was an intermediate form between high school and
university. For several decedes it had an importance beyond the regional boundaries and brought forth a series of important political figures for Bavaria, Austria and
beyond. The intellectual and spiritual awakening of this period is seen in the renovation of the monastery grounds in baroque
fashion, which is, at least in its main features, still recognizable today. The crowning paint of these efforts was the new design of the church. Of course it was not totally accomplished in the baroque
period, but nonetheless presents one of the most important testimonies to the architecture of the South German
baroque. The intellect behind the inner renewal and the outer renovation of the church was the most outstanding abbot of
Ettal, Placidus Seiz II., who reigned from 1709 till 1736. He is the Ettal example for the temperament and imagination of the personalities which the baroque period produced in almost every
monastery. As a result of the French Revolution, the events surrounding Napoleon and the reorganization of the State of Bavaria, Ettal - like all other similiar monasteries - was suppressed by the State of Bavaria. The complex of buildings was partially
demolished, the church was declared to be a parish church and the property of the monastery was confiscated by the state and parts of it
sold. A portion of the buildings got private owners. Almost one century went by before Benedictine life could again be
started. This was initiated and carried out by the Abbey of Scheyern (40 km north of
Munich) and furthered and helped along by the previous owner of the monastery and
grounds, Baron Theodore von Cramer-Klett. Even though hindered by the developments of the Twenties, the Nazi period and the Second World War Ettal was able to continue to develop until today as a Christian
community, in which around four generations live together and attempt to acheive the task given it by church and society.