Medieval monasteries in Europe are among the most visited places by tourists. Previously, they were real centers of public life, because they combined culture, religion, administration, education and even the judicial sphere. The desperate and homeless could find shelter here, and for many children from poor families, education and life in the monastery meant an increase in social status.

Despite the fact that in the modern world most of the original functions of these spiritual places have been lost, they do not cease to arouse keen interest.

Firstly, they represent progressive architectural examples of the Middle Ages, and secondly, they are examples of closed complexes that served themselves due to the work performed by the monks, the animals kept and the crops grown. In essence, these were examples of “states within a state” with a special life and history. Often the monasteries of Europe became pulsars of historical actions, where tragic or great events took place. Many of them are shrouded in mysterious and even mystical stories that still excite and capture the imagination of people.

In the very heart of Europe is located not only one of the oldest, but also one of the most historically valuable monasteries of St. Gall. It is located in the eastern part of Switzerland in the small administrative center of St. Gallen. The town is one of the most mountainous in Switzerland, but it is not this that makes it popular and famous, but the fact that it was here that the center of European education, St. Gallen Abbey, was built in the Middle Ages.

The oldest monastery was founded back in 613 by a lonely hermit monk named Gallus. The first who decided to pay great attention to cultural development within these walls was Abbot Otmar, who invited masters from different parts of Europe to organize a local art school. The mixture of different movements and genres made it possible to create unique paintings and icons, which are pearls of medieval artistic culture.

The continuator of this tradition was Abbot Waldo, who in the 8th century collected one of the richest libraries in Europe within the walls of the abbey. In addition, there was a strong singing school here, within the walls of which songs in the Gregorian style were masterfully performed. In the 10th century, famous poets and musicians of our time worked here, and a little later, the forefather and founder of German literary literature, Notker Gubasty, worked here.

Until the 18th century, St. Gallen was as influential a monastery in Europe as Notre Dame Cathedral in the Middle Ages, but later the monastery's importance weakened. In the second half of the 18th century, the oldest buildings were demolished, and new churches were erected in their place, embodying the Baroque architectural style, which is still capable of surprising tourists and pilgrims from all over the world.

In 1983, UNESCO added the monastery of St. Gall to the World Heritage List. Within the walls of the city’s main attraction is the oldest library, numbering 160 thousand ancient books, 50 thousand of which are available to everyone.

Anyone who was lucky enough to visit the Austrian city of Admont, located on the Enns River, will never be able to forget the beautiful picture: the oldest monastery buildings from the Middle Ages, reflected in the water surface of the river.

The picturesque Admont owes its appearance to the Archbishop of Salzburg, who initiated its construction in 1704. Active educational work was carried out here; the monks were especially progressive in the natural sciences and in the description of historical facts. A modern school for girls was built near the monastery grounds, where the best of the monks taught.

The peak of prosperity came in the Middle Ages, during the ministry of Abbot Engelbert. He was a scientist ahead of his time, from whose pen many significant scientific works came out. It was at this time that a library began to function in the monastery, which to this day is the largest monastic library not only in Europe, but throughout the whole world. The collection of books is so magnificent that queues of visitors line up here every day. More than 70 thousand people visit the library every year. Here you can see 70 thousand handwritten texts and engravings, and among the 200 thousand books there are a huge number of the oldest copies created before the 13th century.

The hall where the library is located is a huge, bright room in which elements of neo-Gothic, Baroque and Romanesque styles are intricately mixed. In addition, there are museums of natural history and art history on site, and the exhibition hall often hosts music festivals. A special department exhibits paintings for the blind. One can only imagine how unique the exhibitions would have been if the monastery buildings had not been damaged by fire in 1865.

Some treasures of the oldest collection were sold during the crisis years of the 20th century, which became very difficult for the monks. There were years when the activities of the monastery were stopped by the National Socialist government, but from 1946 spiritual activities resumed and have not been suspended since then.

Montecassino

The monastery, created by Benedict of Nursia on the site of the former Temple of Apollo, is considered a landmark place not only for Italy, but also for the history of all medieval Europe. Its fate is full of bitter pages, as it was repeatedly destroyed. For this reason, only a small part of the oldest grandeur and beauty observed by the monks and pilgrims of the Middle Ages has been preserved here. Nevertheless, the flow of guests to this monastery, located 120 km from Rome, does not stop in any season.

After the construction of Montecassino in 529, the Benedictine Order arose on its territory. But after 33 years the buildings were destroyed by the Longobards. It took a century and a half to restore, but after another 170 years it was ravaged by the Saracens. Montecassino was rebuilt by Pope Agapit II, who understood its importance in the life of all of Italy. Military attacks also occurred during Napoleon's offensive in 1799.

The next and greatest destruction occurred during the Second World War in February 1944. Then a suspicion arose that there were high-ranking fascist military leaders on the territory of the monastery, so the territory was bombed. Only a few elements of the buildings were able to survive, but the main valuables of the collections, fortunately, managed to be evacuated before the bombing began, so they remained unharmed. During air attacks within the walls of Montecassino, hundreds of civilians who took refuge within these walls during wartime were killed.

On the personal instructions of the Pope, the Benedictine patrimony was restored in the seventies, after which thousands of pilgrims flocked here wanting to see the castle of the Middle Ages. Guests can admire the courtyard, temples, vineyards and listen to stories from medieval life.

In Catholic culture, Saint Maurice is often referred to as the place where heaven is revealed to people. This is the oldest abbey in Western Europe, located in Italy, which survived the Middle Ages and has survived to this day. Over the past 15 centuries, spiritual life has not stopped here for a single day, and Divine services were held at regular intervals.

Saint-Maurice was founded in 515 on the site of the grave of St. Maurice, in whose honor the abbey received its name. The protection of the chosen saint was so strong that monastic life did not stop for a minute, and no disbandment or significant destruction occurred here. From mouth to mouth, many generations of monks since the Middle Ages have passed on the legend that during the next Divine service within the walls of one of the temples, Saint Martin appeared to those praying here, who is also the patron of this place, like Mauritius.

A local feature was that the ministers of the monastery were always jokers and people of subtle irony. You can verify this now when you come to Saint-Maurice. In many ways, this is what contributed to the fact that the monastery survived for many centuries, without becoming a victim of wars, changes in political forces and other vicissitudes. The monks believe that the reason for this is the favorable location: Saint-Maurice “hugs” against the rock, like a child clinging to its mother. The greatest danger, however, during the entire existence of the oldest monastery in Western Europe came precisely from this rock, from which fragments broke off seven times, destroying the church located under it. The last time this happened was in the middle of the 20th century, when a huge stone fell on the bell tower, leaving only ruins.

Many times Saint-Maurice was robbed by forest robbers and devastated by devastating fires. It happened that the monastery was flooded by mountain streams, but the monks steadfastly accepted all the troubles, without stopping their service. In 2015, the Great 1500th anniversary was celebrated here, organized with the participation of UNESCO.

A real pearl of Christianity is located on an island off the coast of Normandy in northwestern France. The castle of amazing beauty with high towers rising into the sky and reflected in the sea water is an unforgettable picture that more than 4 million tourists from all over the world strive to see every year.

Mont Saint-Michel is translated from French as “Mountain of St. Michael the Archangel.” The unique location means that it can be reached by land only during periods of significant low tide, and the tides cut it off from the mainland, leaving a thin isthmus that not everyone dares to step on. This forces tourists to be extremely careful: Victor Hugo also wrote that the speed of the tide of water is equal to the speed of a galloping horse. For this reason, a huge number of tourists were unable to overcome this path, drowning in the bay.

The history of the origin of the oldest monastery is connected with a beautiful legend: in 708, Archangel Michael appeared to Bishop Saint Aubert of Avranches in a dream with a decree to begin the construction of a monastery on the island. When the bishop woke up, he thought that he might have misunderstood the vision. After the second similar dream, he continued to doubt, so the Archangel dreamed of Avransh for the third time, leaving a burn on his head. Immediately after this, the bishop decided to initiate construction.

In the 10th century, the number of pilgrims became so large that a small city was built for them at the foot of the monastery, and the abundance of donations made it possible to collect the necessary amount to erect a huge temple on the top of the mountain. By the beginning of the 13th century, several hundred regular monks lived on the territory of Mont Saint-Michel. But gradually the significance of the abbey weakened, and by 1791 monastic life here ended, giving way to a prison that existed until the end of the French Revolution. Since 1873, a large-scale reconstruction began, during which Mont Saint-Michel has a modern appearance. To many, it resembles the castle from the Disney movie screensaver, which for many years has embodied the beauty of medieval castles.

In France there is one of the most beautiful ancient monasteries - Lérins Abbey. It is located at a distance of three kilometers from Cannes, so most tourists visiting Cannes flock here to touch the history of the Middle Ages.

The Lérins Monastery was founded in 410, after a hermit monk settled here in search of solitude. The disciples did not want to leave their spiritual father, so they followed him and founded Lerins Abbey on a desert island. By the 8th century, this place had become the most influential region of France and Europe; it owned many properties, not excluding the village of Cannes.

Without decent protection, this place became tasty and easy prey for the Saracens, who plundered the treasury and killed all the monks. Only one of the former residents of the monastery survived - monk Elenter, who rebuilt a new temple on the ruins. After this, the buildings were repeatedly destroyed, but the tenacity of the monks overcame all the troubles. After the French Revolution, the island was sold to a famous actress, where the guest house was located for 20 years. Only in 1859 was Bishop Fréjus able to buy it out to revive the holy place.

Now 25 monks live on the territory of the monastery, who, in addition to spiritual services, are engaged in growing grapes and the hotel business.

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Address: Switzerland, St. Gallen
Date of foundation: According to legend, 613
Main attractions: Monastery Library
Coordinates: 47°25"24.9"N 9°22"38.8"E

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Description of the monastery

One of the most interesting attractions in the eastern part of Switzerland can rightfully be called the Monastery of St. Gall.

Monastery of St. Gall from a bird's eye view

This majestic and, frankly speaking, a little gloomy structure, which is sure to attract the attention of lovers of ancient historical and cultural monuments, is located in the Swiss city of St. Gallen. This small town, by modern standards, is the capital of one of the many cantons of Switzerland and is proud of the coat of arms depicting a formidable bear, around whose neck is a collar of pure gold.

By the way, the guide conducting excursions in Switzerland will definitely tell the group that The coat of arms of St. Gallen is closely related to its main landmark, the Monastery of St. Gall, and to be extremely precise, with Saint Gall himself. According to an ancient legend, during one of Saint Gall’s travels, a bear attacked his campsite: the saint was not at a loss and simply called the bear, which, as if enchanted, approached the fire and threw dry branches into it. The fire flared up even hotter, warming the tired traveler, and the saint gave the bear most of his supplies of bread as a reward for obedience.

General plan of the monastery

Nowadays, you can always meet tourists near the monastery: the thing is that this monastery and its interesting history are known far beyond the borders of the European country. Behind the walls of the monastery of St. Gall lies the most priceless treasure on our planet. No, these are not gold bars or tiaras decorated with countless precious stones: the monastery stores the knowledge accumulated by humanity over a long period of time. In the building, which every resident of the cantonal capital is proud of, which, by the way, has the same name as the city - St. Gallen, there is a unique library of its kind.

According to the consensus of historians, this Swiss library is considered one of the oldest collections of books in the whole world. For this reason, the monastery of St. Gall, with its annexes and, of course, the library, was included in the legendary list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. This library attracts travelers like a magnet, and this is not surprising: priceless copies of books that are more than 1000 years old are kept outside the walls of the monastery. It is interesting that out of more than 170,000 books and folios, only 50,000 are available for inspection. This is due to the fact that many books, due to their age, require a constant microclimate. In the hall, where 50,000 books are displayed on the shelves, you can admire... real mummies brought by archaeologists from Egypt. The people whose bodies were embalmed and eventually ended up in the library of the Monastery of St. Gall passed away almost 3,000 (!) years ago.

Monastery Cathedral

Monastery of St. Gall history

Surprisingly, the monastery of St. Gall was at one time considered the largest and most famous among similar Benedictine monasteries in the entire Old World! Naturally, like many architectural monuments throughout its history, the monastery was rebuilt more than once. Of course, even the city, in the center of which the building rises, was founded back in the 7th century. Tradition says that the founder of the monastery is Saint Gall himself, who performed many miracles. It was this saint who built a cell in the town in 613, where he could live modestly and pray to God. Based on official documents, which, despite the inexorable passage of time, miraculously survived in the library, experts argue that the founder of the monastery of St. Gall is not the saint himself, but a certain Otmar, who is mentioned in ancient manuscripts as the abbot of the sacred building.

The Monastery of St. Gall has gained popularity not only in its town, but also far beyond its borders. Thousands of pilgrims came to him, many of whom were wealthy people and could afford large donations. Thanks to these donations, the Monastery of St. Gall in record time becomes a unique religious center, influencing not only St. Gallen, but also the surrounding area.

The wealth, calculated not only in spiritual texts and traditions, but also in gold, allowed the monastery in the 9th century to begin rewriting various religious texts and publishing interpretations of the Bible. It was in those times, or rather in 820, and the legendary library of the monastery of St. Gall was founded. All this became possible because the monastery of the city of St. Gallen in 818 began to report directly to the emperor. Numerous uprisings more than once exposed the monastery to the threat of complete destruction: even the indigenous inhabitants of the city in which it was actually located tried to destroy the architectural structure, which had unlimited power. In the mid-15th century, considered a turning point for all of Switzerland, the city of St. Gallen and the monastery of St. Gall were assigned to the Swiss Confederation. It is interesting that they were classified separately, as if we were talking about different territorial units.

The abbot of the monastery of St. Gall was also a politician: he refused to submit to the Swiss Union and, despite the fact that the building was officially part of it, he maintained close ties and fulfilled all the requirements of the Roman Empire. However, this state of affairs did not last long: the Reformation adopted a law in 1525 providing for the dissolution of the monastery. For just over thirty years, the monastery of St. Gall experienced difficult times, but already at the end of the 16th century, the building, once built on the site of a monastic cell, became... the center of the principality!

From the 16th to the 18th centuries, the monastery of St. Gall, using its influence, was constantly enriched. In the mid-eighteenth century, the abbot decided to rebuild the monastery. It had to have a facade and interior decoration that fully corresponded to the fashion of that era. Two architects were entrusted with the design of the monastery in the popular Baroque style: Johann Beer and Peter Thumba. These were the last years of the heyday of the monastery of St. Gall: in France in 1789, a revolution took place that shook the whole of Europe. All the lands belonging to it are taken away from the monastery and completely deprived of power. After the emergence of the Swiss canton of St. Gallen with the capital of the same name, the monastery was dissolved, its former splendor, greatness and influence remained in the past.

Monastery of Saint Gall today

Nowadays, a tourist who comes to the small but cozy town of St. Gallen can see a neat building with a strict facade. As mentioned above, despite the fact that the monastery was rebuilt in the 18th century in the Baroque style, it still looks a little gloomy.

Now it is a cathedral church, divided into two parts by a rotunda. The traveler will be interested to know that the eastern crypt is the only element that remains from a structure dating back to the 9th century! Everything else in the monastery of St. Gall is a “remake” of the 18th century. By the way, according to legend, it is in this crypt that Saint Gall himself is buried, but his grave has not yet been found, which means this information cannot be called reliable. But the grave of the first abbot of the monastery, Otmar, remained untouched; the remains of his successors rest near it.

In the church, which will certainly interest travelers with its interior decoration in the Rococo style, services continue to this day. Worshipers can offer their prayers to God near the grille, which is trimmed with gold, and some of its parts are painted turquoise. By the way, this lattice at one time performed a certain function: it separated ordinary mortals from the rooms where monks lived and prayed (by the way, quite wealthy monks).

Sports ground on the territory of the monastery

It is not surprising that the most popular place among tourists is the western wing. The outbuilding in which the world-famous library is located. One has only to imagine that among her collection there are almost 500 books written before the Savior came to our world. The library is also proud of its dictionary, thanks to which it is possible to translate many words and sayings from Latin into German. This dictionary was created by masters (and previously books were published exclusively by masters), back in 790. This fact suggests that the oldest German book is kept in a small Swiss town. Having not yet recovered from what he saw in the library, the tourist immediately finds himself in the lapidarium, which is also located in the western wing. In it, on shelves made of strong wood, there are priceless finds discovered during archaeological expeditions. Of no less interest will be the huge collection of paintings that do not hang on the walls, but also stand on special shelves. In the same wing there is also the residence of the bishop, in which you can still see the remains of the former greatness and wealth of the monastery of St. Gall.

Monastic library

A traveler who decides to explore the monastery of St. Gall should strictly follow the rules that are detailed in special guidebooks. In addition, it must be remembered that the church is still active and its parishioners turn to God. It would also be useful to have information that the main... cantonal court sits in the northern wing, whose work it is better not to interfere with. The Monastery of St. Gall in Switzerland is open to visitors from 9 am to 6 pm. During services, tourists are not allowed into the temple. The famous library can be visited from 10 am to 5 pm; the ticket price is low: 7 Swiss francs. As in many developed European countries, access to historical and architectural monuments is free for children, while older people and teenagers are entitled to a discount.

Nowadays, looking at the monastery building with its attractiveness and enormity, you cannot believe that there was once an empty space on the site of the monastery. Medieval monasteries in Europe were built to last for centuries and even millennia. If we talk about the purpose of monasteries, they were centers for the development of philosophical thought, enlightenment and, consequently, the formation of a pan-European Christian culture.

History of the development of monasteries.

The appearance of monasteries in Europe is associated with the spread of the Christian faith in all European countries and principalities. Today it is known that the monastery was the center of the economic and cultural life of Europe. The monasteries were full of life in the truest sense of the word. Many people mistakenly believe that a monastery is simply a Christian temple for worship, inhabited by several monks or nuns. In fact, the monastery is a small town in which the necessary types of farming have been developed, such as agriculture, gardening, cattle breeding, which mainly provide food, as well as material for making clothes. The clothes, by the way, were made here - on the spot. In other words, the monastery was also a center for the development of craft activities, providing the population with clothing, dishes, weapons and tools.
To understand the place of monasteries in the medieval life of Europe, it should be said that the population then lived according to the Law of God. Moreover, it does not matter whether the person was actually a believer or not. Everyone believed without exception; those who did not believe and openly declared it were accused of heretical prejudices, persecuted by the church and could be executed. This moment occurred quite often in medieval Europe. The Catholic Church had unlimited control over all territory inhabited by Christians. Even European monarchs did not dare to dare against the church, because this could be followed by excommunication with all the ensuing consequences. The monasteries represented a dense network of Catholic “supervision” over everything that happened.
The monastery was an impregnable fortress, which, in the event of an attack, could defend its borders for quite a long time, until the main forces arrived, which did not have to wait long. The monasteries were surrounded by thick walls precisely for this purpose.
All medieval monasteries in Europe were the richest buildings. It was said above that the entire population was a believer, and, therefore, had to pay a tax - a tithe of the harvest. This led to the exorbitant enrichment of monasteries, as well as the highest clergy - abbots, bishops, archbishops. The monasteries were drowning in luxury. It was not without reason that literary works appeared at that time, discrediting the life and actions of the Pope and his entourage. Of course, this literature was banned, burned, and the authors were punished. But, nevertheless, some disguised artistic works managed to go into circulation and survive to this day. One of the most significant works of this kind is “Gargantua and Pantagruel”, written by Francois Rabelais.

Education and upbringing.

Monasteries were centers of education and training for the youth of medieval Europe. After the spread of Christianity throughout Europe, the number of secular schools was reduced, and subsequently they were banned altogether because their activities carried heretical judgments. From that moment on, monastery schools became the only place of education and upbringing. Education was carried out in the context of 4 disciplines: astronomy, arithmetic, grammar and dialectics. All training in these disciplines boiled down to opposition to heretical views. For example, learning arithmetic was not about teaching children basic operations with numbers, but about learning a religious interpretation of the number sequence. Calculating the dates of church holidays was done while studying astronomy. The teaching of grammar consisted of correct reading and semantic understanding of the Bible. Dialectics united all these “sciences” in order to teach students the correct way to conduct a conversation with heretics and the art of eloquent argument with them.
Everyone knows the fact that training was conducted in Latin. The difficulty was that this language was not used in daily communication, so it was poorly understood not only by the pupils, but also by some of the highest confessors.
Training was carried out all year round - there were no holidays at that time, but this does not mean that the children did not rest. In the Christian religion there are a huge number of holidays that were considered days off in medieval Europe. On such days, the monasteries held services, so the educational process stopped.
The discipline was strict. For every mistake, the students were punished, in most cases corporally. This process was recognized as useful, since it was believed that during corporal punishment the “Devil Essence” of the human body was expelled from the physical body. But there were still moments of fun when children were allowed to run around, play and have fun.

Thus, the monasteries of Europe were centers not only for the development of culture, but also for the worldview of the entire people inhabiting the European continent. The supremacy of the church in all matters was undeniable, and the conductors of the Pope’s ideas were monasteries scattered throughout the Christian world.

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Authors: Egorova Ksenia, Zgerya Inessa Supervisor: Zagrebina Svetlana Nikolaevna 2015 Municipal autonomous educational institution of the Balashikha urban district “Gymnasium No. 3” Design and research work on history Topic: Medieval monastery 

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Introduction Main part 1.1. The first monasteries in Europe 1.2. Monastery of St. Gallen 1.3. Work on the model of a medieval monastery Conclusion Contents 

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Project goal: To create a model of a medieval monastery. Project objectives: 1. Study the time of the appearance of the first monasteries in Europe 2. Consider the features of medieval monasteries 3. Make a model of the St. Gallen monastery Stages of work on the project: 1) Study of literature on the topic 2) Selection of illustrative material 3) Search for information about surviving medieval monasteries 4) Creating a layout plan for the monastery 5) Working on creating a layout 6) Working on creating a presentation 7) Preparing to defend the project Introduction

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Bethlehem is a holy city for Christians, the second most important after Jerusalem, because here, according to the Gospel (Luke 2:4−7, Matthew 2:1−11), Jesus Christ was born. From the first centuries of Christianity to the present day, millions of pilgrims have been heading to this holy land. At the end of the fourth century, a follower of Blessed Jerome of Stridon, the rich and noble Roman matron Paula, arrived here. Having gathered around her a fairly large female community, she opened the first nunnery in Bethlehem on this day in the year 395. Pavla became its abbess, and subsequently organized two more convents. Bethlehem (nunnery)

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Montecassino The Benedictine monastery of Montecassino rises on a high hill above the highway, 120 km from Rome. This is one of the oldest monasteries in Europe, but fate was unmerciful to it; what we see now dates back to the 20th century. You should not go here to feel the spirit of antiquity or the special atmosphere of old monasteries; this is not left in Montecassino, but from a historical point of view, the monastery is of interest. Montecassino was founded in 529 by Saint Benedict of Nursia, on the site of a pagan temple of Apollo. The abbey became the birthplace of the Benedictine Order.

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Lérins Abbey Lérins Abbey. The monastery, located on the islet of Saint-Honorat, off the coast of Cannes, is the most striking attraction of this city. It is believed to be one of the oldest Gallic buildings of its kind, having been founded around 410. Now the complex belongs to the Cistercians. The monastery has regular ferry connections to the coast of Cannes, so getting to it is easy: you just need to visit the old port. Saint Honorat, the founder of Lérins Abbey, wanted to build a temple that would become the residence of the brethren. By the 8th century, the complex already had enormous influence in Europe, and at that time more than 500 monks lived here, who were distinguished by asceticism. Many of them later became bishops or founded new monasteries. A fort was built next to the abbey in the 11th century, which housed a refectory, a chapel and a library. There are chapels around the monastery, six of which have survived to this day, and only ruins remain of one. The main building was erected more than 1000 years ago, but after the monastery was closed in the 18th century, it was destroyed and the relics of the founder were transferred to Grasse Cathedral. The monastic life was revived here only a century and a half ago, thanks to the efforts of the Cistercian order, which restored many buildings, although not in the original style, but in the Romanesque style, so the appearance of the monastery has changed completely.

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Monastery of St. Gall - a monastery located in the center of the city of St. Gallen, was once one of the largest Benedictine monasteries in Europe. The Monastery of Saint Gall was founded in 613 by the hermit monk Gallus. The monastery gradually developed into an early territorial principality. An important element of the territorial reorganization carried out by the monastery was the unification of rules. In 1468, all existing customs and orders were collected and recorded on paper. From now on, all loyal subjects of the land had to obey the established orders. Unlike other members of the Swiss Confederation, the monastery continued to be directly subordinate to the Holy Roman Empire of the German nation. In 1525, the Reformation came to the monastery, and two years later the monastery of St. Gallen was dissolved, but by 1532 it was reopened. Thirty years later, all subjects of the monastery's lands converted back to the Catholic faith, and by the end of the 16th century the monastery had once again become a modern centralized territorial principality. St. Gallen (St. Gall)

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The monastery experienced its last heyday in the 18th century - this is primarily evidenced by extensive construction work in the period from 1755 to 1767. The monastery was rebuilt in the Baroque style under the direction of the architects Peter Thumb and Johann Beer. After the French Revolution of 1789, the assigned monastic lands demanded freedoms and rights, and with the annexation of Toggenburg, the political dominance of the monastery came to an end. In 1803 the new canton of St. Gallen was formed, and two years later the monastery was finally dissolved. The former monastery church of St. Gall is today the cathedral church of the Bishopric of Gaul. The church is included in the UNESCO cultural heritage list. The Baroque building was erected in the 18th century (1755) on the site of an older religious building from the 9th century. It is considered one of the last monumental religious buildings of the late Baroque era. The cathedral is divided by a rotunda into western (nave) and eastern (choir) parts.

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The church owes its artistic and sculptural decoration in the Rococo and Classicist styles to South German masters. The frescoes were executed by the brothers Johann and Matthias Gigl, the bas-reliefs by Christian Wenzinger, and the paintings by Joseph Wannenmacher. The two rows of wooden benches installed in the choir are decorated with carvings depicting scenes from the life of St. Benedict. The towers of the eastern facade are 68 meters high. The relief on the pediment depicts the Ascension of the Virgin Mary, beneath it are statues of Saints Desiderius and Mauritius.

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The monastery library is located in the western wing of the monastery. The library premises were created under the direction of the architect Peter Thumb in 1758 - 1767. Currently, the library has about 150,000 volumes, including about 2,000 manuscripts (four hundred of them are more than a thousand years old). For example, the library houses a Latin-German dictionary from 790, the oldest book in the German language. Also in the western wing there is a lapidarium, which displays fragments of the Carolingian cathedral of 830 - 837, found during archaeological excavations, as well as a collection of paintings on wooden panels. In the western part of the court wing today is the residence of the bishop.

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From a historical and cultural point of view, the greatest value here is the bishop’s personal chapel, the main hall, and the chapel of St. Gall. Today the cantonal court sits in the northern wing. The outbuilding was erected in the 19th century and was used for various purposes - from an arsenal to a fire station. In the eastern part of the former monastery there is the Karlstor gate, built in 1570. They are named after Archbishop Charles Borromeo and are the only external gate of the city that has survived to this day. The front building on the eastern side of the monastery square is called the New Palace (Neue Pfalz). After the dissolution of the monastery, this former residence of the abbot of the monastery became the seat of the Diet of the newly formed canton of St. Gallen.

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1 - main church; 2 - library and scriptorium; 3 - sacristy; 4 - towers; 5 - patio; b - chapter hall (meeting place for monks); 7 - monks’ common bedroom and bath; 8 - refectory; 9 - kitchen; 10 - pantry with cellar; 11 - room for pilgrims; 12 - outbuildings; 13 - guest house; 14 - school; 15 - abbot's house; 16 - doctor's house; 17 - place for growing medicinal herbs; 18 - hospital and premises for novices with a separate church; 19 -garden with cemetery and vegetable garden; 20 - goose house and chicken coop; 21-barns; 22 - workshops; 23 - bakery and brewery; 24 - mill, threshing house, dryer; 25 - barns and stables; 26 - house for servants.

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  1. Introduction
  2. Residents of the monastery
  3. Time and discipline
  4. Architecture

Christian monasticism arose in the Egyptian and Syrian deserts. In the 3rd century, some believers, in order to hide from the world with its temptations and completely devote themselves to prayer, began to leave pagan cities for deserted places. The first monks who practiced extreme asceticism lived either alone or with several disciples. In the 4th century, one of them, Pachomius from the Egyptian city of Thebes, founded the first cenobitic (cinen) monastery and wrote a charter that described how monks should live and pray.

In the same century, monasteries began to appear in the west of the Roman world - in Gaul and Italy. After 361, the former Roman soldier Martin founded a hermit community near Poitiers, and after 371, the Marmoutier monastery near Tours. Around 410, Saint Honorat of Arles created the Lérins Abbey on one of the islands in the Bay of Cannes, and Saint John Cassian, around 415, created the monastery of Saint-Victor in Marseille. Later, thanks to the efforts of St. Patrick and his followers, their own - very severe and ascetic - tradition of monasticism appeared in Ireland.

Unlike hermits, the monks of cenobitic monasteries united under the authority of the abbot and lived according to the charter created by one of the fathers. In the Eastern and Western Christian world there were many monastic rules Pachomius the Great, Basil the Great, Augustine of Hippo, Columbanus, etc., but the most influential was the charter drawn up around 530 by Benedict of Nursia for the Abbey of Montecassino, which he founded between Naples and Rome.

Page of the Rules of Benedict of Nursia. 1495 Biblioteca Europea di Informazione e Cultura

Benedict did not demand from his monks radical asceticism and constant battle with their own flesh, as in many Egyptian or Irish monasteries. Its charter was kept in the spirit of moderation and was intended rather for “beginners.” The brothers had to unquestioningly obey the abbot and not leave the walls of the monastery (unlike the Irish monks, who actively wandered).

Its charter formulated the ideal of monastic life and described how to organize it. In Benedictine monasteries, time was distributed between divine services, solitary prayer, soul-saving reading and physical labor. However, in different abbeys they did this in completely different ways, and the principles formulated in the charter always needed to be clarified and adapted to local realities - the lifestyle of monks in the south of Italy and in the north of England could not help but differ.


Benedict of Nursia transfers his rule to St. Maurus and other monks of his order. Miniature from a French manuscript. 1129 Wikimedia Commons

Gradually, from a radical choice for a few ascetics ready for abstinence, poverty and obedience, monasticism turned into a mass institution closely connected with the world. Even the moderate ideal began to be forgotten more and more often, and morals became loose. Therefore, the history of monasticism is full of calls for reform, which was supposed to return the monks to their original severity. As a result of such reforms, “subfamilies” arose in the Benedictine “family” - congregations of monasteries, reformed from one center and often subordinate to the “mother” abbey.

Clunians

The most influential of these “subfamilies” was the Cluny Order. The Abbey of Cluny was founded in 910 in Burgundy: monks from there were invited to reform other monasteries, they founded new monasteries, and as a result, by the 11th-12th centuries, a huge network arose that covered not only France, but also England, Spain, Germany and other lands. The Clunians achieved immunity from interference in their affairs by secular authorities and local bishops: the order was accountable only to Rome. Although the Rule of Saint Benedict ordered the brothers to work and cultivate their own lands, this principle was forgotten in Cluny. Thanks to the flow of donations (including the fact that the Clunians tirelessly celebrated funeral masses for their benefactors), the order became the largest landowner. The monasteries received taxes and food from the peasants who cultivated the land. Now, for monks of noble blood, physical labor was considered shameful and a distraction from the main task - worship (on ordinary days it took seven hours, and on holidays even more).

Cistercians

The secularization that triumphed among the Clunians and in other congenial monasteries once again awakened dreams of a return to original severity. In 1098, the abbot of the Burgundian monastery of Molem, named Robert, despairing of leading his brothers to severity, left there with 20 monks and founded the Abbey of Citeaux. It became the core of the new, Cistercian (from Cistercium- the Latin name for Sieve) of the order, and soon hundreds of “daughter” abbeys appeared in Europe. The Cistercians (unlike the Benedictines) wore not black, but white (from undyed wool) robes - so they began to be called “white monks.” They also followed the Rule of Saint Benedict, but they sought to carry it out literally in order to return to their original severity. This required retiring to distant “deserts”, shortening the duration of services and devoting more time to work.

Hermits and knights-monks

In addition to the “classical” Benedictines, in the West there were monastic communities that lived according to other rules or retained the rule of St. Benedict, but applied it in a fundamentally different way - for example, hermits who practiced extreme asceticism in small communities, such as the Camaldoules (their order was founded by Saint Romuald), the Carthusians (followers of Saint Bruno) or the Granmontenses (disciples of Saint Stephen of Muret).

Further, at the intersection of the nave with the transept, there were choirs (E). There the monks gathered for hours and masses. In the choirs, opposite each other, there were two rows of benches or chairs in parallel English stalls, fr. stalls.. In the later Middle Ages, they most often had reclining seats, so that during tedious services the monks could either sit or stand, leaning on small consoles - misericords Let's remember the French word misericorde(“compassion”, “mercy”) - such shelves were indeed a mercy for tired or weak brothers..

Benches were installed behind the choir (F), where during the service the sick brothers, temporarily separated from the healthy ones, were located, as well as novices. Next came the partition English rod screen, fr. jube., on which a large crucifix was installed (G). In parish churches, cathedrals and monastery churches, where pilgrims were admitted, it separated the choir and presbytery, where services were held and the clergy were located, from the nave, where the laity had access. The laity could not go beyond this border and in fact did not see the priest, who, in addition, stood with his back to them. In modern times, most of these partitions were demolished, so when we enter some medieval temple, we need to imagine that before its space was not at all united and accessible to everyone.

In Cistercian churches there may have been a choir for converse in the nave (H)- worldly brothers. From their cloister they entered the temple through a special entrance (I). It was located near the western portal (J), through which the laity could enter the church.

2. Cloister

A quadrangular (less often polygonal or even round) gallery, which adjoined the church from the south and connected the main monastic buildings together. A garden was often laid out in the center. In the monastic tradition, the cloister was likened to a walled Eden, Noah's Ark, where the family of the righteous were saved from the waters sent to sinners as punishment, Solomon's Temple or Heavenly Jerusalem. The name of the galleries comes from the Latin claustrum- “closed, fenced space.” Therefore, in the Middle Ages, both the central courtyard and the entire monastery could be called this.

The cloister served as the center of monastic life: through its galleries the monks moved from the bedroom to the church, from the church to the refectory, and from the refectory, for example, to the scriptorium. There was a well and a place for washing - lavatorium .

Solemn processions were also held in the cloister: for example, in Cluny, every Sunday between the third hour and the main mass, the brothers, led by one of the priests, walked through the monastery, sprinkling all the rooms with holy water.

In many Benedictine monasteries, such as the Abbey of Santo Domingo de Silos (Spain) or Saint-Pierre de Moissac (France), on the capitals of the columns on which the galleries rested, many scenes from the Bible and the lives of saints were carved , allegorical images (as a confrontation between vices and virtues), as well as frightening figures of demons and various monsters, animals intertwined with each other, etc. The Cistercians, who sought to get away from excessive luxury and any images that could distract the monks from prayer and contemplation, banished such decor from their monasteries.

3. Washbasin

On Maundy Thursday during Holy Week - in memory of how Christ washed the feet of his disciples before the Last Supper In. 13:5-11.— the monks, led by the abbot, humbly washed and kissed the feet of the poor people who were brought to the monastery.

In the gallery adjacent to the church, every day before Compline the brethren gathered to listen to the reading of some pious text - collatio This name arose because Saint Benedict recommended for this “Conversation” (“Collationes”) John Cassian (about 360 - about 435), an ascetic who was one of the first to transfer the principles of monastic life from Egypt to the West. Then in a word collatio began to be called a snack or a glass of wine, which on fast days was given to monks at this evening hour (hence the French word collation- “snack”, “light dinner”)..

4. Sacristy

A room in which liturgical vessels, liturgical vestments and books were kept under lock and key (if the monastery did not have a special treasury, then relics), as well as the most important documents: historical chronicles and collections of charters, which listed purchases, donations and other acts , on which the material well-being of the monastery depended.

5. Library

Next to the sacristy there was a library. In small communities it looked more like a closet with books; in huge abbeys it looked like a majestic repository in which the characters in “The Name of the Rose” by Umberto Eco are looking for the forbidden volume of Aristotle.

We can imagine what monks read at different times and in different parts of Europe thanks to the inventories of medieval monastic libraries. These are lists of the Bible or individual biblical books, commentaries on them, liturgical manuscripts, writings of the Church Fathers and authoritative theologians Ambrose of Milan, Augustine of Hippo, Jerome of Stridon, Gregory the Great, Isidore of Seville and others., lives of saints, collections of miracles, historical chronicles, treatises on canon law, geography, astronomy, medicine, botany, Latin grammar, works of ancient Greek and Roman authors... It is well known that many ancient texts have reached our days only because, despite their suspicious attitude towards pagan wisdom, they were preserved by medieval monks In Carolingian times, the richest monasteries - such as St. Gallen and Lorsch in the German states or Bobbio in Italy - possessed 400-600 volumes. The catalog of the library of the monastery of Saint-Riquier in the north of France, compiled in 831, consisted of 243 volumes. The chronicle, written in the 12th century in the monastery of Saint-Pierre-le-Vif in Sens, provides a list of manuscripts that Abbot Arnauld ordered to be copied or restored. In addition to biblical and liturgical books, it included commentaries and theological works by Origen, Augustine of Hippo, Gregory the Great, the passion of the martyr Tiburtius, a description of the transfer of the relics of St. Benedict to the Fleury monastery, “History of the Lombards” by Paul the Deacon, etc..

In many monasteries, scriptoria functioned at the library, where the brothers copied and decorated new books. Until the 13th century, when workshops where lay scribes worked began to multiply in cities, monasteries remained the main producers of books, and monks remained their main readers.

6. Chapter Hall

The administrative and disciplinary center of the monastery. It was there that every morning (after the first hour service in the summer; after the third hour and morning mass in the winter) the monks gathered to read one of the chapters ( capitulum) Benedictine Rite. Hence the name of the hall. In addition to the charter, a fragment from the martyrology (a list of saints whose memory was celebrated on each day) and an obituary (a list of deceased brothers, patrons of the monastery and members of its “family” for whom the monks should offer prayers on this day) were read out there.

In the same hall, the abbot instructed the brethren and sometimes conferred with selected monks. There, the novices who had completed the probationary period again asked to be tonsured as monks. There the abbot received the powers that be and resolved conflicts between the monastery and church authorities or secular lords. The “accusatory chapter” was also held there - after reading the charter, the abbot said: “If someone has something to say, let him speak.” And then those monks who knew of some kind of violation by someone or themselves (for example, they were late for service or left a found thing with them for at least one day), had to admit it in front of the rest of the brethren and suffer the punishment that will be appointed by the rector.

The frescoes that decorated the capitular halls of many Benedictine abbeys reflected their disciplinary vocation. For example, in the St. Emmeram Monastery in Regensburg, murals were made on the theme of the “angelic life” of monks struggling with temptation, modeled on St. Benedict, their father and legislator. In the monastery of Saint-Georges de Bocherville in Normandy, on the arches of the capitular hall, images of corporal punishment to which offending monks were sentenced were carved.

7. Conversation room

The Rule of Saint Benedict ordered the brothers to remain silent most of the time. Silence was considered the mother of virtues, and closed lips were considered “a condition for the peace of the heart.” Collections of customs of different monasteries sharply limited those places and moments of the day when the brothers could communicate with each other, and the lives described the grave punishments that fell on the heads of the talkers. In some abbeys, a distinction was made between the “great silence” (when it was forbidden to speak at all) and the “little silence” (when it was possible to speak in a low voice). In certain rooms - the church, dormitory, refectory, etc. - idle conversations were completely prohibited. After Compline there was to be absolute silence throughout the entire monastery.

In case of emergency, it was possible to talk in special rooms ( auditorium). In Cistercian monasteries there could be two of them: one for the prior and monks (next to the chapter hall), the second primarily for the cellarer and converse (between their refectory and kitchen).

To facilitate communication, some abbeys developed special sign languages ​​that made it possible to transmit the simplest messages without formally violating the charter. Such gestures did not mean sounds or syllables, but entire words: the names of various rooms, everyday objects, elements of worship, liturgical books, etc. Lists of such signs were preserved in many monasteries. For example, in Cluny there were 35 gestures for describing food, 22 for items of clothing, 20 for worship, etc. To “say” the word “bread”, you had to make a circle with two little fingers and two index fingers, like this as bread was usually baked round. In different abbeys the gestures were completely different, and the gesticulating monks of Cluny and Hirsau would not understand each other.

8. Bedroom, or dormitorium

Most often, this room was located on the second floor, above the chapter hall or next to it, and it could be accessed not only from the cloister, but also through a passage from the church. Chapter 22 of the Benedictine Rule prescribed that each monk should sleep on a separate bed, preferably in the same room:

«<…>...if their large number does not allow this to be arranged, let them sleep ten or twenty at a time with the elders, who are in charge of taking care of them. Let the lamp in the bedroom burn until the morning.
They must sleep in their clothes, girdled with belts or ropes. When they sleep, they should not have their knives with which they work, cut branches, etc., at their sides, so as not to injure themselves while sleeping. Monks must always be ready and, as soon as a sign is given, immediately get up and rush, one ahead of the other, to the work of God, decorously, but also modestly. The youngest brothers should not have beds next to each other, but let them be mixed with the elders. As we take up the work of God, let us encourage each other brotherly, dispelling the excuses invented by the drowsy.”

Benedict of Nursia instructed that a monk should sleep on a simple mat, covered with a blanket. However, his charter was intended for a monastery located in southern Italy. In the northern lands - say, in Germany or Scandinavia - compliance with this instruction required much greater (often almost impossible) dedication and contempt for the flesh. In different monasteries and orders, depending on their severity, different measures of comfort were allowed. For example, Franciscans were required to sleep on bare ground or on planks, and mats were only allowed to those who were physically weak.

9. Warm room, or calefactorium

Since almost all the rooms of the monastery were not heated, a special warm room was set up in the northern lands where the fire was maintained. There the monks could warm up a little, melt frozen ink or wax their shoes.

10. Refectory, or refectorium

In large monasteries, the refectory, which was supposed to accommodate the entire brethren, was very impressive. For example, in the Parisian Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés the refectory was 40 meters long and 20 meters wide. Long tables with benches were placed in the shape of the letter “U”, and all the brethren were seated behind them in order of seniority - just like in the choir of a church.

In Benedictine monasteries, where, unlike the Cistercian ones, there were many cultic and didactic images, frescoes depicting the Last Supper were often painted in the refectory. The monks were to identify themselves with the apostles gathered around Christ.

11. Kitchen

The Cistercian diet was primarily vegetarian, with some fish included. There were no special cooks - the brothers worked in the kitchen for a week, and on Saturday evening the team on duty gave way to the next one.

For most of the year, the monks received only one meal a day, in the late afternoon. From mid-September to Lent (beginning around mid-February) they could eat for the first time after the ninth hour, and in Lent - after supper. Only after Easter did the monks receive the right to another meal around noon.

Most often, the monastic lunch consisted of beans (beans, lentils, etc.), designed to satisfy hunger, after which the main course was served, including fish or eggs and cheese. On Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, each person usually received a whole portion, and on fasting days, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, one portion for two.

In addition, to maintain the strength of the monks, every day they were given a portion of bread and a glass of wine or beer.

12. Refectory for Converse

In Cistercian monasteries, lay brothers were separated from full-fledged monks: they had their own dormitory, their own refectory, their own entrance to the church, etc.

13. Entrance to the monastery

The Cistercians sought to build their abbeys as far as possible from towns and villages in order to overcome the secularization in which, over the centuries since the time of St. Benedict, the “black monks,” especially the Clunians, had become mired. Nevertheless, the “white monks” also could not completely isolate themselves from the world. They were visited by laymen, members of the monastery “family”, related to brothers by ties of kinship or who decided to serve the monastery. The gatekeeper, who watched the entrance to the monastery, periodically welcomed the poor, who were given bread and leftover food that the brothers had not eaten.

14. Hospital

Large monasteries always had a hospital - with a chapel, a refectory, and sometimes with its own kitchen. Unlike their healthy counterparts, patients could count on enhanced nutrition and other benefits: for example, they were allowed to exchange a few words during meals and not attend all the long divine services.

All the brothers were periodically sent to the hospital, where they underwent bloodletting ( minutio) - a procedure that is even necessary to maintain the correct balance of humors (blood, mucus, black bile and yellow bile) in the body. After this procedure, the weakened monks received temporary indulgences for several days in order to restore their strength: exemption from all-night vigils, an evening ration and a glass of wine, and sometimes delicacies like roast chicken or goose.

15. Other buildings

In addition to the church, the cloister and the main buildings where the lives of monks, novices and converses took place, the monasteries had many other buildings: the abbot’s personal apartments; a hospice for poor travelers and a hotel for important guests; various outbuildings: barns, cellars, mills and bakeries; stables, dovecotes, etc. Medieval monks were engaged in many crafts (they made wine, brewed beer, tanned leather, processed metals, worked on glass, produced tiles and bricks) and actively developed natural resources: they uprooted and felled forests, quarried stone , coal, iron and peat, developed salt mines, built water mills on rivers, etc. As they would say today, monasteries were one of the main centers of technical innovation.

Sources

  • Duby J. The time of the cathedrals. Art and Society, 980–1420.

    M., 2002. Prou ​​M. (ed.). Paris, 1886.