Dobbertin Abbey, Dobbertin, Germany

Dobbertin Abbey is a former Benedictine monastery of monks, afterwards housed a community of nuns, and later still a women's collegiate foundation. The abbey was founded during the Christianisation of Germany in about 1220 by Prince Heinrich Borwin II of Mecklenburg and was the first field monastery in Mecklenburg. The founder gave it to the Benedictines for a community of monks. 15 years later it was turned into a Benedictine nunnery.

In 1549 the Landtag at Sagsdorf Bridge near Sternberg resolved to introduce the Lutheran Reformation into Mecklenburg. Despite violent resistance the abbey was secularised and in 1572 converted into a Lutheran collegiate foundation for noblewomen.

In the middle of the 19th century the church was restored by Georg Adolf Demmler to plans by Karl Friedrich Schinkel. The work was completed in 1857.

In 1918 the abbey premises became the property of the state and were converted into a youth hostel. After World War II Soviet troops were stationed here, and destroyed much of historical interest.

From 1947 to 1991 the buildings were used as an old people's residential and care home. Then they were transferred to the responsibility of the charitable organisation of the German Evangelical Church, who set up a care home for the severely physically handicapped.

References:

Wikipedia

User Reviews

Frank Melzer (2 years ago)
Tolle Anlage mit schönem Café, Besuch ist lohnenswert

Ralph Hirt (2 years ago)
Sehr erholsam. Nettes Restaurant. Viel Wasser.

Detlef Kuhnt (3 years ago)
Adventsmarkt mit sehr viel Liebe und ganz vielen Menschen Das muss ein Fehler sein. Bei mir leuchteten 5 Sterne

Herbert Goerbert (3 years ago)
Weihnachtsmarkt am 01.12.2018. In diesem Jahr wurden alle Erwartungen übertroffen. Das sehr gute Wetter lockte unzählige Besucher an. Highlight war der Auftritt des Chores vom Parchimer Gymnasium. Auch der Weihnachtsmann drehte seine Runden.

Joachim Bierlein (3 years ago)
Es wurde längst alles über diesen wunderschönen Ort gesagt - einfach dasein und genießen ! Die Gastronomie hat noch Verbesserungspotential, bei meinem Schnitzel wollte die Panade unbedingt weg

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Photo from Flickr, copyright twiga-swala

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Heraclea Lyncestis

Heraclea Lyncestis was an ancient Greek city in Macedon, ruled later by the Romans. It was founded by Philip II of Macedon in the middle of the 4th century BC. The city was named in honor of the mythological hero Heracles. The name Lynkestis originates from the name of the ancient kingdom, conquered by Philip, where the city was built.

Heraclea was a strategically important town during the Hellenistic period, as it was at the edge of Macedon"s border with Epirus to the west and Paeonia to the north, until the middle of the 2nd century BC, when the Romans conquered Macedon and destroyed its political power. The main Roman road in the area, Via Egnatia went through Heraclea, and Heraclea was an important stop. The prosperity of the city was maintained mainly due to this road.

The Roman emperor Hadrian built a theatre in the center of the town, on a hill, when many buildings in the Roman province of Macedonia were being restored. It began being used during the reign of Antoninus Pius. Inside the theatre there were three animal cages and in the western part a tunnel. The theatre went out of use during the late 4th century AD, when gladiator fights in the Roman Empire were banned, due to the spread of Christianity, the formulation of the Eastern Roman Empire, and the abandonment of, what was then perceived as, pagan rituals and entertainment.

Late Antiquity and Byzantine periods

In the early Byzantine period (4th to 6th centuries AD) Heraclea was an important episcopal centre. A small and a great basilica, the bishop"s residence, and a funerary basilica and the necropolis are some of the remains of this period. Three naves in the Great Basilica are covered with mosaics of very rich floral and figurative iconography; these well preserved mosaics are often regarded as fine examples of the early Christian art period.

The city was sacked by Ostrogoth/Visigoth forces, commanded by Theodoric the Great in 472 AD and again in 479 AD. It was restored in the late 5th and early 6th century. When an earthquake struck in 518 AD, the inhabitants of Heraclea gradually abandoned the city. Subsequently, at the eve of the 7th century, the Dragovites, a Slavic tribe pushed down from the north by the Avars, settled in the area. The last coin issue dates from ca. 585, which suggests that the city was finally captured by the Slavs. As result, in place of the deserted city theatre several huts were built.

The Episcopacy Residence was excavated between 1970 and 1975. The western part was discovered first and the southern side is near the town wall. The luxury rooms are located in the eastern part. The 2nd, 3rd and 4th rooms all have mosaic floors. Between the 3rd and 4th rooms there is a hole that led to the eastern entrance of the residence. The hole was purposefully created between the 4th and 6th century.

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