Stift Klosterneuburg
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Klosterneuburg Monastery is a Roman Catholic Augustinian monastery in Austria. It is usually known by its more familiar German name, Stift Klosterneuburg, and is located just north of Vienna, in the town of the same name. It was founded in 1114 by (Saint) Leopold III, Margrave of Austria and his wife Agnes. Leopold was a Babenberger and is the patron saint of Austria. Since 1133, it has been home to a community of Canons Regular of St. Augustine, a religious order of the Catholic Church who follow the Augustinian Rule.
The extraordinary Monastery of the present day (erected 1730-1834) is established on a hill rising directly from the banks of the Danube. This foundation is one of the oldest and richest of its kind in Austria; and it owns much of the land upon which the north-western suburbs of Vienna stand. Within the complex stands the old chapel of 1318 containing Leopold's tomb and the Verdun Altar (which dates 12th century). It also contains a treasury, relic-chamber, and a library with 30,000 volumes and many manuscripts. The winecellar contains an immense tunnel similar to the one at Heidelberg Castle in Heidelberg, Germany.
The name "Stift" comes from the German word Stiftung which may be rendered in English as an "endowment." An abbey in the German-speaking world is frequently called a Stift because often its foundation was made possible by a generous benefactor. In the case of Stift Klosterneuburg, this was St. Leopold of Austria.
[edit] See also
- Augustinians
- Bridgittines
- Order of the Canons Regular of Premontre; Norbertines founded by St. Norbert (1120)
- Catholic Encyclopaedia article - now very outdated
[edit] External links
- The official website of the Stift Klosterneuburg
- The Augustinian Canons
- International Order of St. Augustine
- Text of the Rule of St. Augustine
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