Elchingen Abbey Church

Elchingen Abbey was a Benedictine monastery in Oberelchingen. For much of its history, Elchingen was one of the 40-odd self-ruling imperial abbeys of the Holy Roman Empire and, as such, was a virtually independent state that contained several villages aside from the monastery itself. At the time of its secularisation in 1802, the abbey covered 112 square kilometers and had 4000-4200 subjects.

Dedicated to the Virgin Mary and Saints Peter and Paul, the monastery was founded by the Counts of Dillingen in 1128. The abbey was one of the very few that enjoyed Imperial immediacy (independent of the jurisdiction of any lord and answering directly to the Holy Roman Emperor, and thus a territorial principality in its own right). The abbot sat in the Reichstag of the Holy Roman Empire.

Like all the other imperial abbeys, Elchingen lost its independence in the course of the secularisation process in 1802-1803 and the monastery was dissolved. By 1840 the buildings had been almost entirely demolished. In 1921 the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate settled on the site. Today the abbey church remains.

References:

• Wikipedia

Address

Klosterhof 7, Oberelchingen, Germany

Details

Founded: 1128
Category: Religious sites in Germany
Historical period: Hohenstaufen Dynasty (Germany)