Wiblingen Abbey (Kloster Wiblingen)

Marbled columns in pink and green, gilded capitals, a gallery running all the way round and above it a huge ceiling fresco: the library hall of Wiblingen Abbey is one of the most striking Rococo rooms in southern Germany. The former Benedictine abbey stands in the south of Ulm between the Iller and the Danube, about four kilometres from the Minster, and is often overlooked. Yet besides the library it offers an early Neoclassical basilica and a small abbey museum.

History: 700 years of Benedictines

The abbey was founded in 1093 by the counts Hartmann and Otto of Kirchberg, who gave the monks a relic of the Holy Cross in 1099. From 1714 a vast new complex was built on the model of the Escorial in Spain, with the church at the centre of a symmetrical quadrangle. The library hall was completed in 1744; later the Munich architect Johann Michael Fischer took over the works. The church was first designed by Johann Georg Specht, but from 1778 the painter Januarius Zick completed it in the early Neoclassical style; it was consecrated in 1783.

On 27 March 1806 the abbey was dissolved, one of the last to go. It became the residence of Duke Henry of Württemberg, and locals were forbidden, on pain of punishment, to call it anything but a "palace", which is why the street along the abbey wall is still called Schloßstraße. From 1848 it served as barracks for the federal fortress of Ulm, and only in 1915–1917 was the missing south wing added. Today parts of the buildings are used by Ulm University Hospital and an academy.

What to see

• The library hall: Franz Martin Kuen's ceiling fresco of 1744, ranging from Adam and Eve in Paradise to scenes of monastic life, is considered his masterpiece. Along the sides stand eight life-size white figures by Dominikus Hermenegild Herberger: four Christian and four secular allegories, including Justice and Chronos, the god of time. Signs above the shelves still show the old subject areas.
• The Basilica of St Martin: A minor basilica since 1993, with frescoes by Januarius Zick on the theme of the Holy Cross and a late Gothic crucifix by Niklaus Weckmann beneath the chancel arch. The relic of the Cross is shown in the Mount of Olives chapel. The church is being restored until about 2028 and can only partly be seen because of scaffolding.
• The abbey museum: In the former guest rooms of the convent, films, models and an audio guide explain monastic life.

Opening hours and admission (as of October 2026)

The library hall, museum and ticket desk keep the same hours:

• 8 September to 31 October: Tuesday to Friday, Sunday and public holidays 10:30–16:00, Saturday 13:00–16:00.
• 1 November to 14 March: Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays only, 12:00–16:00.
• 15 March to 5 April and 1 August to 7 September: Tuesday to Sunday 10:30–16:00.
• 6 April to 31 July: as in autumn, Saturdays from 13:00.
• Library hall with museum: adults €6, reduced €3, families €15. Special tours €9.
• Basilica: free.

Closed on Mondays. The abbey is accessible, and photography for private use is allowed.

Getting there and parking

The address is Schlossstraße 38, 89079 Ulm-Wiblingen. By bus, take line 4 from the Ehinger Tor stop to "Kloster Wiblingen". There are around 100 free parking spaces for cars within walking distance, plus three for coaches and motorhomes.

Tripto tip

Allow one to one and a half hours. Mind the short winter hours: from November to mid-March you can only get in at weekends. In the library hall, look up along the gallery; the fresco only reveals its full effect from the middle of the room. Combine your visit with the Fishermen's Quarter and the Minster in Ulm's old town.