Pfad der Stille Schöntal Tour 5 Kloster Schöntal - Rossach - Oberkessach - Bieringen

Schöntal - Oberkessach - Rossach - Schöntal, 21 km

Knittel verses from the abbot himself

Hiking in the "Beautiful Valley", the Schöntal Monastery, spiritual center for over a millennium, a center of the church, education and art, is of course the focus.

The imposing monastery complex of the former Cistercian abbey is one of the most beautiful spiritual residences in the north of Baden- Württemberg. The magnificent baroque monastery church is impressive. Ring walls and corner towers still remain from the medieval complex. The monastery was founded in 1157 by a nobleman named Wolfram von Bebenburg. He was fulfilling a vow after returning unharmed from the 2nd Crusade. There are theories that the original cell of the monastery is to be found in the pilgrimage church of Neusaß. A visit there is definitely worthwhile.

The monastery experienced its first heyday in the 15th century. Its economic and political power grew. However, during the Reformation, the Peasants' War and especially during the Thirty Years' War, it was repeatedly plundered and destroyed. During the 49-year tenure of Abbot Benedikt Knittel (1683 - 1732), the baroque appearance of the monastery was significantly shaped. The Chapel of the Holy Sepulchre on the Kreuzberg was also created during his tenure. Knittel became particularly famous for his literary talent: he created a large number of instructive and humorous verses in Latin and German, the so-called "Knittel-Verse".

Another famous man who shaped the face of our homeland and had a close relationship with the monastery is the knight with the iron hand, Götz von Berlichingen. According to tradition, the first monks asked the nobles of Berlichingen to give them land for the relocation of their newly founded monastery from Neusaß to the "Beautiful Valley" of the Jagst. In return, they were to receive the right to build their burial place in the cloister. This explains why Götz von Berlichingen, who cannot exactly be described as a man of the church, found his final resting place in the monastery. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe created a literary monument to him with his drama in 1773. After secularization in 1802, monastic life in Schöntal came to an end after around 650 years. Today, the former monastery buildings are home to the Rottenburg-Stuttgart diocesan education center, a forest school and the town hall of the municipality of Schöntal.