Collegiate Church of Our Lady in Distress

The collegiate church of St. Mary in Distress is a church consecrated in 1074 and a monastery on the Kapitelberg in the Essen district of Stoppenberg.
The collegiate church was founded by Abbess Swanhild and consecrated as St. Nicholas Chapel in 1074 by Archbishop Anno II. The church initially served a convent of Premonstratensians and Premonstratensian nuns, which was founded on the Stiftberg in the 12th century. In the 13th century, only a convent of nuns remained, from which a secular women's foundation emerged in the 15th century. The number of canonesses was limited to twenty, as this was the number of benefits to which each canoness was entitled from the property of the foundation. In 1803, at the time of secularization, the foundation was dissolved. However, some of the canonesses remained, as they owned their own houses on the mountain. The collegiate church then served as a parish church until 1907, when the St. Nicholas Church was built at the foot of the Stiftberg as the new parish church due to the significantly increased population of Stoppenberg. In 1965, a convent of the Order of Discalced Carmelites of "Mary in Distress" was established at the collegiate church. A convent garden and a host bakery are operated by the sisters. With around 17,000 hosts daily, several parishes are supplied.

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