Abbaye de Baumgarten, Cistercian abbey in Bernardvillé, France.
The Abbaye de Baumgarten is a former Cistercian abbey about one kilometre south of Bernardvillé in the Bas-Rhin, on the right bank of the Schernetz. Surviving parts include a vaulted two-aisled hall, probably the refectory, with four columns and several capitals, and a capital from around 1200 in the kitchen. The Nothelferkapelle, first mentioned in 1153, also survives.
Cunon de Michelbach, bishop of Strasbourg from 1103 to 1125, founded the abbey around 1125 on land belonging to Epfig; the church was consecrated in 1133. On 10 May 1148 Cistercian monks from Beaupré settled here, and in 1153 the church, cloister and enclosure were consecrated to the Holy Cross. The buildings were destroyed in the Peasants' War in 1525 and the site was abandoned until Trappist nuns from Altbronn moved in at the end of 2009.
The community here follows daily liturgical prayer and singing rooted in Cistercian traditions that shape the residents' way of living. Visitors can join prayer times and experience the rhythm of monastic life directly.
Visitors can attend daily prayer times held throughout the year. It is wise to check in advance about current visiting hours, as daily life in the monastery is organized around a strict liturgical schedule.
The abbey's name appears in records under many spellings, from Bongart in 1133 to Baumgartencis in 1182 and Boni Gardi. The Latin form Pomatium means orchard, matching the German Baumgarten. Abbot Nicolaus Salicetus, who led the monastery from 1482 to before 1490, wrote the Antidotarius animae, printed in Strasbourg in 1489.
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