Monastic Island of Reichenau

Monastic Island of Reichenau

The island of Reichenau on Lake Constance preserves the traces of the Benedictine monastery, founded in 724, which exercised remarkable spiritual, intellectual and artistic influence. The churches of St Mary and Marcus, St Peter and St Paul, and St George, mainly built between the 9th and 11th centuries, provide a panorama of early medieval monastic architecture in central Europe. Their wall paintings bear witness to impressive artistic activity.



Outstanding Universal Value

Brief synthesis

The Monastic Island of Reichenau on Lake Constance in south-west Germany represents a masterpiece of human creative genius as the ensemble of the three churches on the monastic island constitutes an exceptional example of an integrated group of medieval churches retaining elements of Carolingian, Ottonian, and Salian architecture that are relevant to the history of architecture. The Benedictine monastery was an important artistic centre of its time, superbly illustrated by its monumental wall paintings and its illuminations, and is of great significance to the art history in Europe of the 10th and 11th centuries.

The crossing, transepts, and chancel of the Carolingian cruciform basilica of Mittelzell, consecrated in 816, are exceptional both in their size and their excellent state of conservation, and constitute a major example of this particular type of crossing (ausgeschiedene Vierung) in Europe. Equally important are the surviving parts of the Carolingian monastery with a heating system modelled according to ancient Roman examples. The transepts and apse of the church of St Mary and Mark (1048), linked to the Carolingian parts by the nave, are equally important to the history of European architecture. The wall paintings in the apse of the church of St Peter and Paul at Niederzell are of exceptional quality, and constitute one of the earliest depictions of the Maiestas surviving north of the Alps. The wall paintings decorating the nave of the church of St George at Oberzell are artistically outstanding and constitute the only example of a complete and largely preserved set of pre-1000 scenic wall paintings north of the Alps.

Criterion (iii): The remains of the Reichenau foundation bear outstanding witness to the religious and cultural role of a great Benedictine monastery in the early Middle Ages.

Criterion (iv): The churches on the island of Reichenau retain remarkable elements of several stages of construction and thus offer outstanding examples of monastic architecture in Central Europe from the 9th to the 11th centuries.

Criterion (vi): The Monastery of Reichenau was an important artistic centre of great significance to the history of art in Europe in the 10th and 11th centuries, as is superbly illustrated by its monumental wall paintings and its illuminations.

Integrity

All elements necessary to express the Outstanding Universal Value are present in the dispersed buildings across the island, a legacy of the socio-economic structure of the Middle Ages, which has shaped the image of the entire foundation.

Authenticity

The clusters of dwellings do not constitute real groups of buildings, a characteristic that persisted even after secularisation and the spate of building that followed World War II. The secular architecture is dominated by certain recent modifications and/or contemporary constructions. Any original structure that survives has been revealed or is accessible to architectural research. Nature conservation sites designated to separate sectors of recent construction from agricultural land (now given over largely to hothouses) help to give an idea of the original aspect of the island. The medieval-style reconstructions characteristic of the 19th century, detrimental to the Renaissance and Baroque additions, has largely been eliminated. This practice has therefore reduced the complex historic stratification of these buildings, particularly their interiors. While the architectural surfaces of the Reichenau churches have been entirely renovated and simplified, corresponding to the conventional image of medieval church architecture, the authenticity of the remarkable wall paintings in the churches is, however, a positive element.

Protection and management requirements

The three churches, the monastic buildings, and ten other buildings on the island have been designated as cultural monuments of outstanding value under the Law for the Protection of Cultural Monuments of the Land of Baden-Württemberg (Denkmalschutzgesetz Baden-Württemberg of 25 May 1971, revised on 25 April 2007). The same law protects seventy other properties as designated cultural monuments. Under the terms of the law, any construction project or modification to a cultural monument must be submitted to the Administration for the Protection of Historic Monuments of Baden-Württemberg (Freiburg im Breisgau Division), which is represented at local level by the District of Constance Administration. Cultural monuments of outstanding value enjoy further protection by being listed in the Inventory of Monuments (Denkmalbuch), which applies to cases of reconstruction or extension of such monuments. In these cases, approval must be sought for any project affecting the surroundings of a listed monument, if these surroundings are of particular importance to the monument.

Ownership of the religious buildings on the island of Reichenau is shared between a number of institutions. The Abbey of St Mary and Mark and the presbytery at Mittelzell belong to the parish of Our Lady, the town hall to the Town Council of Reichenau, the Church of St George to the Catholic Church of St George Fund, and the Church of St Peter and Paul to the Catholic Church Fund. Most of the other buildings on the island are private property. Protection of property owned by the Land of Baden-Württemberg is the responsibility of the Regierungspräsidium of Freiburg and the Landesamt für Denkmalpflege im Regierungspräsidium Stuttgart in conjunction with the Federal Property Administration.

A particular problem concerns the growing visitor numbers at the famous church of St George, resulting in a change of the interior climatic conditions. The rise in humidity with the accompanying pollution and formation of molds causes significant damage to the cultural heritage assets, especially to the Ottonian wall-paintings. Since the beginning of the 1980s, climatic conditions inside St George’s have been continuously recorded. The Landesamt für Denkmalpflege in cooperation with the Technical University of Darmstadt - now University of Stuttgart, Institute for Materials of Architecture – carries out a very precise monitoring of the Ottonian wall-paintings to analyse the indoor climate, micro-climatic impacts, air motion, influence of radiation and influence of visitation on the micro-climate. The collected data are to support a concept and new strategies to optimise the indoor climate, especially to establish a strategy to control the visitors’ access (visitor management). Visitor management for St George shall include replacing entrance for individual visitors by guided tours during critical seasons.

In consultation with the political community, the Organisation of Cultural Heritage Preservation worked out a development programme for a cautious building development to address any risks for development pressure, including the development of hothouses.

Several sectors of the island of Reichenau (some 230 ha out of a total area of 460 ha) have been designated as nature reserves under the Law for Nature Conservation of Baden-Württemberg (Naturschutzgesetz Baden-Württemberg) of 13 December 2005, revised on 17 December 2009. In addition, the Federal Law for Nature Conservation (Bundesnaturschutzgesetz) of 29 July 2009, revised on 28 July 2011, protects landscapes of historic cultural interest, which includes the surroundings of listed monuments. The provisions of the Building Law (Baugesetzbuch of 23 September 2004, revised on 22 July 2011) regarding nature conservation and the protection of landscapes and monuments apply to several sensitive sections of the island, while the building regulations of the Land of Baden-Württemberg (Landesbauordnung für Baden-Württemberg of 8 August 1995, revised on 17 December 2009) apply to the whole of the island. The various development plans for the Municipality of Reichenau, the District of Constance, and the Regional Plan lay down stringent restrictions on the development of new buildings, designed to encourage the preservation of the traditional organisation of the landscape.

There is no official buffer zone for the property, but its island location of Reichenau in the middle of the northern reaches of Lake Constance provides adequate equivalent protection. In addition, the lake shores in the vicinity (Gnadensee, Zellersee, and Untersee) are protected by both German and Swiss nature conservation and planning legislation.

The active and ongoing policy pursued by the administrations responsible for the protection of historic monuments, nature conservation, and planning permission under the terms of the legal provisions in place correspond to the requirements to be legitimately expected of a prescribed management plan. The policy ensures State control over the conservation of the cultural and natural assets on the island of Reichenau and continuous implementation of the necessary conservation and restoration measures. The State Administration for the Protection of Historic Monuments is staffed by highly qualified personnel, guaranteeing the professional level of design and execution of all the necessary conservation measures required for an appropriate management system.
Long Description

The remains of the Reichenau foundation bear outstanding witness to the religious and cultural role of a great Benedictine monastery in the early Middle Ages. The Monastery of Reichenau was a highly significant artistic centre of great significance to the history of art in Europe in the 10th and 11th centuries, as is superbly illustrated by its monumental wall paintings and its illuminations. The churches retain remarkable elements of several stages of construction and thus offer outstanding examples of monastic architecture in Central Europe from the 9th to the 11th centuries.

For over 1,000 years the history of the island of Reichenau, which lies in the northern reaches of Lake Constance, was closely intertwined with that of the monastery. The first Abbot, Pirmin, was given the task of building a monastery in honour of the Virgin Mary and Saints Peter and Paul. He oversaw the building of the first abbey, a wooden building, at Mittelzell on the northern shore of the island, as well as a three-winged cloister against the north side of the church. The whole building was gradually rebuilt in stone by 746. The monastery received generous endowments of land, and the island, an integral part of the abbey lands, was given over to agriculture. The monastery became a famous centre for teaching and creativity in literature, science, and the arts. The church was consecrated in 1048, in the presence of Emperor Henry III.

At the western end of the island of Reichenau, Egino, a former Bishop of Verona, built the first church of St Peter at Niederzell, consecrated in 799. The church was twice rebuilt and slightly altered in the 9th-10th centuries. The monastery buildings lay to the north, near the lake. In the late 11th and early 12th centuries the church was rebuilt and its two east towers were completed in the 15th century. Now dedicated to St Peter and St Paul, it became a parish church and was decorated in Rococo style in the 18th century. Abbot Heito III built the church of St George at Oberzell in the eastern part of the island in honour of the relic of the saint's head, which he brought back from a voyage to Rome in 896, the year of the church's consecration

The former abbey of St Mary at Mittelzell features three aisles and opposed transepts. It retains its rectangular west tower, flanked by narrow porches and the broad west transept dating from the mid-11th century. Beneath this high tower lies the apse, in front of which stands the altar. The 12th-century nave with its wooden roof opens out into the east transept whose crossing is defined by four identical broad arches and the liturgical choir of the church dedicated in 816, the oldest parts of the church. The Flamboyant Gothic choir is flanked by a sacristy and treasury. The monastery built in the 17th century on the southern side of the church now houses the town hall and the presbytery.

The church of St Peter and St Paul at Niederzell is a Romanesque structure of three aisles culminating at the eastern end in three hemispherical apses concealed within a central block and flanked by two impressive bell towers. The central apse retains fine wall paintings from 1104-34 laid out in three rows. A figure of Christ in Majesty in a mandorla is surrounded by symbols of the Evangelists, the patron saints of the church, and cherubim. Above stands a row of Apostles and another of the Prophets. Other fragments of 12th-century wall paintings survive, particularly in the north chapel where they represent the Passion Cycle.

In the church of St George at Oberzell a two-storey porch and a western apse dating from the early Romanesque period lead into the Carolingian church consisting of three aisles and a west choir of complex structure topped by a tower. The walls of the nave are decorated with remarkable early medieval wall paintings depicting the miracles of Christ. Each of the scenes is framed by decorative bands while painted busts feature between the arches of the arcade and figures of the Apostles between the windows. The chapel of St Michael on the first floor of the porch is also decorated with wall paintings depicting the Last Supper.
Source: UNESCO/CLT/WHC
Historical Description

For over a thousand years the history of the island of Reichenau, which lies in the northern reaches of Lake Constance, was closely intertwined with that of the monastery.

The deed of foundation of the Benedictine abbey is dated 25 April 724. The first Abbot, Pirmin, probably from Meaux, was given the task of building a monastery in honour of the Virgin Mary and Saints Peter and Paul. Abbot Pirmin no doubt received endowments from the Alaman princes, although tradition established in the 12th century dated the foundation back to the Carolingian ruler Charles Martel (714-41). Pirmin oversaw the building of the first abbey, a wooden building, at Mittelzell on the northern shore of the island, as well as a three-winged cloister against the north side of the church. The whole building was gradually rebuilt in stone by 746. The single nave of the church was considerably extended by a porch at one end and a rectangular choir at the other. The choir for the monks was separate from that of the laity.

From modest beginnings, the abbey prospered under the authority of abbots who served as counsellors on matters of church and state and as tutors, particularly to the Carolingian emperors Charlemagne (768-814) and Louis the Pious (814-40). The monastery, an ideal staging-post between Germany and Italy, enjoyed the protection of Carolingian and Othonian rulers. It received generous endowments of land and the island, an integral part of the abbey lands, was given over to agriculture. The monastery became a centre for teaching and creativity in literature (poet Walafrid Strabo served as abbot from 838 to 849), science (Hermann the Lame, 1013-54), and the arts (10th-11th century schools of illumination and wall paintings in particular) renowned far and wide.

On his return from a voyage to Byzantium, Abbot Heito had the abbey rebuilt as a cruciform basilica with three aisles in which the square form of the transept crossing is reflected in the whole. The main choir is made up of two apsidal hemicycles and a system of alternating supports was added to the nave. The new building was consecrated in 816. The monastic buildings were redesigned and their new disposition served as the model for the Plan of St Gall, the standard plan of a Benedictine abbey, produced at Reichenau in about 825.

His successor Abbot Erlebald (823-38) extended the church to the west. The arrival in 830 of the relics of St Mark the Evangelist, brought to the abbey by Bishop Ratolf of Verona, sparked a series of acquisitions of other relics and the creation of new altars. Abbot Heito III (888-913) replaced the antechurch with a square choir and a broad western transept flanked by two towers. The new western church was dedicated to St Mark. A round axial chapel of the Holy Cross was built to the east of the main choir which housed the relics of the Precious Blood. Heito's original church was altered around the year 1000, and again in the early 11th century when Abbot Bernon (1008-48) replaced the western portion with the present-day transept opening into an apse lodged within a rectangular tower. The church was consecrated on 24 April 1048, in the presence of the Emperor Henry III. A new nave was built in the 12th century and was given a new roof after a fire in 1235. To the east, a polygonal Gothic choir and a new sacristy replaced the chapel of the Holy Cross (1443- 47). Much later, the church acquired a new roodscreen (1742) and a new sacristy (1779).

In the mid 15th century, a wall separated Mittelzell from the dwellings of the farmers, wine-growers, fishermen, and stewards that collected around the abbey. It came under the authority of the Bishops of Constance in 1542 and new monastery buildings were constructed to the south of the church (around 1605- 10).

At the western end of the island of Reichenau, Egino, a former Bishop of Verona, built the first church of St Peter at Niederzell, which was consecrated in 799. The church was twice rebuilt and slightly altered in the 9th-10th century, the apse being made larger and a porch being added to the nave. The monastery buildings lay to the north, fairly near the lake. In the late 11th-early 12th century the church with its three aisles and no transept was rebuilt and its two east towers were completed in the 15th century. Now dedicated to St Peter and St Paul, it became a parish church and was decorated in rococo style in the 18th century.

Abbot Heito III built the church of St George at Oberzell in the eastern part of the island in honour of the relic of the saint's head, which he brought back from a voyage to Rome in 896, the year of the church's consecration. The church was quickly rebuilt with three aisles, a raised crossing, a crypt, and a square choir. A century later the church was decorated with wall paintings and later, between the 10th century and the early 11th century, a large apse was built on the west side with a gateway and porch entrance. Several other changes were made over the centuries that followed: a tower was built over the crossing (1385), which was then given a vaulted roof (around 1435), the two side arms were converted into sacristies, the west apse was redecorated (1708), and the tall windows were enlarged.

In total 25 churches and chapels were built on the island. From the 14th and 15th centuries the island became home to communities of nuns. Most of these buildings, demolished in the 19th century following the secularization of the estate of the Bishop of Constance (1803), survive in the form of archaeological remains. The Abbey's manuscripts and archives were transferred to Karlsruhe and the University of Heidelberg library. The monastery's vineyards and farmland were parcelled out and sold off. Traditional agriculture such as the growing of grapes and peaches continued, while a hundred or so new houses were built between the end of the 19th century and the early 20th century. In 1838-39 the island of Reichenau was linked to the mainland by a causeway and from the end of the 19th century it attracted numerous artists and intellectuals. Today the island's around 120 farms are given over primarily to vines, horticulture, and orchards.

Source: UNESCO/CLT/WHC
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