The reformers did away with no other medieval institution as radically as they did with the monasteries. Saxony was once a land of monasteries, even if most of them have now disappeared without a trace. This (almost) forgotten part of Saxon history is now being rediscovered: Saxon monastery history has been researched for years at the Chair of Saxon and Comparative Regional History at Leipzig University under the direction of Enno Bünz and the Institute for Saxon History and Folklore in Dresden in collaboration with numerous academics. The result is now available in the form of the three-volume Saxon Monastery Book, published by Leipzig University Press in April.
Three-volume basic work sheds light on religious community lifeThe new publication is the first to provide a comprehensive overview of the many different forms of religious community life in Saxony. It looks at monasteries, convents and commendations (branches of the knightly orders) and thus at institutions that seem strange to the modern world, but which were present and influential in earlier centuries. the reformers’ negative view of monastic life has had a long-lasting effect, not only in Saxony, and has contributed to the fact that scholars have hardly ever dealt with Saxon monasteries and convents. Yet the history of monasteries is by no means only of interest to church historians or theologians, as the spiritual communities of the Middle Ages shaped both the church and the world in many different ways," says editor Enno Bünz. It is not just about faith and piety, but also about everyday ways of life, ruling practices, economic methods, education and culture. Monasteries and the world were inextricably intertwined.
during the Middle Ages, there were 74 monasteries, abbeys and orders of knights in the area of today’s Free State of Saxony. The fact that some monasteries were relocated once or several times brings the total number of monastery locations to 80," summarizes the historian. These institutions shaped the history of the country locally and regionally, and were also hubs of an international network of religious community life from Scandinavia to Spain, from Ireland to Sicily. The "Saxon Monastery Book" shows that almost all the important orders and religious communities of the Middle Ages were established here and flourished for centuries.
The monastery book is designed as a handbook that presents the spiritual institutions according to a standardized processing scheme and thus also enables a comparative view. The focus is on the history, building and art history, archaeology and library history of the ecclesiastical institutions. All monastery articles, written by numerous experts, are equipped with historical and current photographs, site plans, floor plans and property maps. Extensive lists of sources and bibliographies form the starting point for further research. The descriptions and illustrations encourage readers to follow the traces on site. The monastery book is not only aimed at academics, but also at historically interested laypeople and local researchers, as it also contains a great deal of local historical information through the history of the monastery.
The monastery book will be presented to the public at various presentation events throughout Saxony. The book launch will kick off on Thursday, May 8, 2025 in the ballroom of the Old Town Hall in Leipzig at 7:00 pm (admission 6:30 pm). University Rector Eva Inés Obergfell will give a welcoming address. The editors will present the structure of the work and provide insights into the historical Saxon monastic landscape. The monastery book will be presented at a further event on Monday, May 12, 2025 at 5 p.m. at the Saxon State Library (SLUB) in Dresden. Further presentation dates will take place in Freiberg , Kamenz , Annaberg-Buchholz , Pirna , Altzella and Bautzen.
The Saxon Monastery Book (ISBN 978-3-86583-816-2) costs 224 euros and 249 euros in a decorative slipcase. It is available from Leipziger Universitätsverlag and bookshops.
