The Abbey of Marienberg is a Benedictine monastery located just above Burgusio, a hamlet of Malles, in the upper Val Venosta. It is the tallest Benedictine building in Europe (1,335 meters above sea level), and is one of the most important monasteries of the historic Tyrol.
Abbazia di Marienberg History
The Marienberg abbey, also called Monte Maria, was founded by the nobles of Tarasp in the twelfth century, or around 1150, in the same place where there was a small chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary and transferring here from Scuol-Schuls in Engadine their monastic foundation of the late eleventh century. The monastery was repeatedly put to the test by plague, peasant wars and religious agitations;
In 1724 the monks decided to open a gymnasium near Merano together with a boarding school for the students. During the Napoleonic period, precisely in 1807, the Bavarian government decided to suppress the monastery, and almost all the monks were transferred to the monastery of Fiecht in Schwaz in Austria. Fallen Napoleon, the Emperor Francis I of Austria decided to reopen the religious structure, and therefore also the gymnasium of Merano.
After the coming to power of fascism, the monks had to leave the gymnasium in Merano. Only at the end of the Second World War, precisely from 1946 to 1986, the Benedictines managed a middle school and a boarding school, until our days arrived with the abbey, property of the Benedictine Congregation of Switzerland, still protagonist of cultural and religious life and economy of the region: a place of peace and strength, of history and of the future, of work and prayer that is a source of inspiration both for the local population and for the guests.
Of particular importance are the museum, opened in 2007 where there are historical documents and artistic treasures that illustrate the daily life of the monastery and the example of San Benedetto. and the crypt with its precious frescoes, one of the greatest examples of Roman art in the whole of the Alps.
The guest wing in the House of the Abbe Hermann has eight single rooms and a twin room with a bathroom, a small kitchen and a living room suitable for interviews. For the prayer and moments of reflection, the conventual church is available. A place away from daily routines, where you can grow spiritually and in good health.