Bebenhausen Abbey

Bebenhausen Abbey is a former Cistercian monastery complex located in Bebenhausen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The complex is also the location of Bebenhausen Palace, a hunting retreat created and maintained by two Kings of Württemberg. The complex was named a historic monument in 1974.

The monastery was established in the late 12th century by the Premonstratensians, but was ceded to the Cistercians in 1190. From the 13th to 15th centuries, Bebenhausen Abbey's fortunes grew rapidly until it became one of the richest monasteries in southern Germany. This period was also one of architectural expansion and renovation for the monastery. In the 14th century, it came under the dominion of the then County of Württemberg, whose rulers were later to dissolve the monastery in the 16th century. The abbey grounds were reused for a boarding school and Protestant seminary. Bebenhausen Abbey was also to play a brief role in post-World War II German politics, as the parliament of the French-controlled state of Württemberg-Hohenzollern devised their constitution at the monastery.

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