Interlaken Monastery

Last updated
Interlaken Monastery
Kloster Interlaken
2011-07-21-Interlaken (Foto Dietrich Michael Weidmann) 047.JPG
Interlaken Castle, incorporating parts of the monastery
Reliefkarte Bern blank.png
Red pog.svg
Location within Canton of Bern
Switzerland adm location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Interlaken Monastery (Switzerland)
Monastery information
Other names German: Augustinerchorherrenstift mit angegliedertem Frauenkonvent
Order Augustinians
Establishedby 1133
Disestablished1528
Diocese Lausanne
People
Founder(s)Baron Seliger of Oberhofen
Architecture
Heritage designation Swiss heritage site of national significance
Site
Location Interlaken
Coordinates 46°41′13″N7°51′50″E / 46.686949°N 7.8638°E / 46.686949; 7.8638 Coordinates: 46°41′13″N7°51′50″E / 46.686949°N 7.8638°E / 46.686949; 7.8638
Visible remainsPart of Interlaken Castle, used for municipal government offices

Interlaken Monastery (German : Kloster Interlaken or German : Augustinerchorherrenstift) was a convent of the Augustinian Canons Regular (German : Augustinerchorherren) from about 1133 until 1528 at Interlaken in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance. [1]

History

The provost of the Monastery was first mentioned in 1133 when Holy Roman Emperor Lothair took the Monastery, founded by Baron Seliger of Oberhofen, under his protection. The Monastery was part of the diocese of Lausanne. According to the deed of 1133, the members of the Monastery were allowed to choose their own provost and kastvogt or bailiff over a religious institution. During the 12th century the provosts were confirmed by the bishop as well as by the pope. [2] By 1247, there were also women at the Monastery. During the 12th century the kastvogt office came to the von Eschenbach family. However, in 1308, Walther von Eschenbach helped John Parricida murder John's uncle king Albert I. In 1318, the family lost their position at Interlaken when Albert's son, Duke Leopold I was elected kastvogt. When he died in 1325, the provost and general chapter transferred the office to his brother Albert II. However, the Monastery remained able to choose their own provost and kastvogt. Starting in the 15th century Bern tried to become the patron of the monastery but did not succeed until 1472. [2]

During the 13th century the Monastery's influence spread throughout the neighboring area and into the Aare and Gürbe valleys. They eventually had authority over two dozen churches along with a number of villages and farms and became the largest religious landholder in the region. The greatest density of the estates were held on the eastern end of Lake Thun, around Lake Brienz and in the valleys of Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald. During the 13th and the beginning of the 14th century the Monastery grew and prospered. However, in 1350 a period of crises and conflicts led to a decline in the number of monks and nuns and increasing debt. A document from 1310, indicates that there were 30 priests, 20 lay brothers and 350 women at the Monastery. In contrast, in 1472 there were only the provost, the prior, nine ordinary canons, seven novices and 27 nuns. At this time, the Monastery also had problems with its tenants and neighbors. In 1348, the people of Grindelwald and Wilderswil joined a mutual defense league with Unterwalden. Bern responded with a military expedition to the Bernese Oberland, which ended in defeat for Unterwalden and its allies. [2] In 1445 the Evil League (Böser Bund) rose up in the Oberland near Interlaken and fought against Bernese military service and taxes following the Old Zürich War. [3]

During the 14th century the canons and nuns stopped following most of the monastic rules. In 1472 a violent dispute between the men and the women's convents resulted in two visitations by the Bishop of Lausanne who noted serious deficiencies. The provost was arrested and some of the canons were replaced by canons from other convents. Despite the reform measures the nun's convent was closed in 1484 and its property transferred to the newly founded monastery of St. Vincent in Bern. [2]

During the Protestant Reformation, the Monastery was secularized in 1528. The canons received a financial settlement and the properties were now managed by a Bernese bailiff. The tenants of the Monastery who had expected the abolition of all owed interest, responded by rioting, which was suppressed by Bern. [2]

After the Reformation, Bern created the Interlaken bailiwick from the Monastery lands. Part of the Monastery building was used as the headquarters of the district administration, while the rest was used as an indigent hospital. In 1562-63 Bern converted the Monastery church's choir into a granary and a wine cellar. In 1746-50 the west wing was demolished and Governor Samuel Tillier built the so-called new castle. It has remained the center of administration for the Interlaken district since that time. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lauterbrunnen</span> Village and municipality in Switzerland

Lauterbrunnen is a village and municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. The municipality comprises the other villages of Wengen, Mürren, Gimmelwald, Stechelberg and Isenfluh, as well as several other hamlets. The population of the village of Lauterbrunnen is less than that of Wengen, but larger than that of the others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canton of Bern</span> Canton of Switzerland

The canton of Bern or Berne is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the de facto capital of Switzerland. The bear is the heraldic symbol of the canton, displayed on a red-yellow background.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Interlaken</span> Municipality in Switzerland in Bern

Interlaken is a Swiss town and municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the canton of Bern. It is an important and well-known tourist destination in the Bernese Oberland region of the Swiss Alps, and the main transport gateway to the mountains and lakes of that region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grindelwald</span> Municipality in Switzerland in Bern

Grindelwald is a village and municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the canton of Berne. In addition to the village of Grindelwald, the municipality also includes the settlements of Alpiglen, Burglauenen, Grund, Itramen, Mühlebach, Schwendi, Tschingelberg and Wargistal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jungfraujoch</span> Glacier saddle in the Swiss Alps

The Jungfraujoch is a saddle connecting two major 4000ers of the Bernese Alps: the Jungfrau and the Mönch. It lies at an elevation of 3,463 metres (11,362 ft) above sea level and is directly overlooked by the rocky prominence of the Sphinx. The Jungfraujoch is a glacier saddle, on the upper snows of the Aletsch Glacier, and part of the Jungfrau-Aletsch area, situated on the boundary between the cantons of Bern and Valais, halfway between Interlaken and Fiesch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bernese Oberland</span> Higher part of the canton of Bern, Switzerland

The Bernese Oberland, the highest and southernmost part of the canton of Bern, is one of the canton's five administrative regions. It constitutes the Alpine region of the canton and the northern side of the Bernese Alps, including many of its highest peaks, among which the Finsteraarhorn, the highest in both range and canton.

Payerne Priory was a Cluniac monastery at Payerne, in Vaud, Switzerland. The monastery is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Bern</span>

The city of Bern is one of the Zähringer foundations of the late 12th century. By the end of the 13th century, it had acquired de facto imperial immediacy. It became a full member of the Old Swiss Confederacy in 1353, and during the 15th century managed to significantly expand its sphere of influence, notably with the conquest of Aargau in 1415. With the acquisition of Vaud in 1536, Bern became the most powerful city-republic north of the Alps, and one of the leading Protestant cities in early modern Switzerland. The canton of Bern in the Restored Confederacy of 1815 even after the loss of Aargau and Vaud remained the largest Swiss canton, relegated to second rank only with the secession of Jura in 1979. Since 1848 Bern has served as the federal city (capital) of Switzerland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unterseen</span> Municipality in Switzerland in Bern

Unterseen is a historic town and a municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lütschental</span> Municipality in Switzerland in Bern

Lütschental is a village and a municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gündlischwand</span> Municipality in Switzerland in Bern

Gündlischwand is a village and municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. Besides the village of Gündlischwand, the municipality also includes the hamlet of Zweilütschinen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Habkern</span> Municipality in Switzerland in Bern

Habkern is a municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. The municipality includes the settlements of Bohlseiten, Bort, Schwendi and Mittelbäuert.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matten bei Interlaken</span> Municipality in Switzerland in Bern

Matten bei Interlaken is a village and municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tourism in Switzerland</span> Overview of tourism in Switzerland

Tourists are drawn to Switzerland's diverse landscape as well as the available activities, which take advantage of the Alpine climate and landscapes, in particular for skiing and mountaineering.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Königsfelden Monastery</span>

Königsfelden Monastery is a former Franciscan double monastery, which housed both a community of Poor Clare nuns and one of Franciscan friars, living in separate wings, in the municipality of Windisch in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland. It was founded in 1308 by the Habsburgs. In the course of the Protestant Reformation in Switzerland in 1528 it was secularized, and the complex was then the residence of the bailiffs of Bern.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unspunnen Castle</span> Historic site in Wilderswil

Unspunnen Castle is a castle, now in ruins, located in the municipality of Wilderswil in the Bernese Highlands of Switzerland. The castle, likely constructed in the early 12th century, overlooks the city of Interlaken.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oberhofen Castle</span>

Oberhofen Castle is a castle in the municipality of Oberhofen of the Canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ringgenberg Castle</span> Swiss castle ruin and church building

Ringgenberg Castle is a castle in the municipality of Ringgenberg of the Canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weissenau Castle</span>

Weissenau Castle is a ruined castle in the municipality of Unterseen of the Canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grindelwald Terminal railway station</span>

Grindelwald Terminal railway station is a transportation complex in the municipality of Grindelwald in the Swiss canton of Bern. It is the valley station for two cableways: the Eiger Express to the Eiger Glacier, and the Grindelwald–Männlichen to the Männlichen. Trains on the Bernese Oberland line stop here as well, providing regular service to Interlaken Ost and Grindelwald.

References

  1. ↑ "Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance". A-Objects. Federal Office for Cultural Protection (BABS). 1 January 2018. Archived from the original on 2 September 2016. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Interlaken Monastery and District in German , French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland .
  3. ↑ Böser Bund in Berner Oberland in German , French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland .
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.