Zwiefalten Minster

From the outside, little Zwiefalten on the southern edge of the Swabian Jura looks almost sleepy, until you stand in front of the grey façade of its minster. Behind it opens one of the largest Baroque church interiors in Germany: paired marble columns with gilded capitals, a vast ceiling fresco and a pulpit where skeletons come back to life. Zwiefalten Minster of Our Lady is considered a masterpiece of late Baroque and a complete work of art of south German Rococo.

History: from reform monastery to Imperial Abbey

The Benedictine monastery was founded in 1089 by Counts Kuno of Wülflingen and Liutold of Achalm, with the first monks coming from Hirsau in the northern Black Forest. Over the centuries Zwiefalten built up its own small territory on the Swabian Jura. In 1750, at great cost, the abbey bought its way out of Württemberg's protection and answered only to the emperor.

The new church dates from this period. Choir and towers rose from 1739, but the master builders Josef and Martin Schneider refused to close the vault. The abbey brought in Johann Michael Fischer from Munich, who redesigned the building. The vault was closed in 1747 and the church consecrated in 1765. At over 90 m long, it is Fischer's longest church. The monastery was dissolved as early as 1802, and from 1812 a royal asylum moved into the buildings. The minster became a parish and pilgrimage church and has barely changed since.

What to see

• The façade: Grey tufa from nearby Gauingen, a Corinthian order that curves forward, and above the door St Benedict by Johann Joseph Christian. In the gable kneel the two founders, one as a monk and one as a knight.
• The frescoes: Franz Joseph Spiegler painted the great nave fresco showing the Benedictine order honouring Mary, and the dome fresco of Mary as Queen of All Saints above the four continents known at the time.
• The pulpit: The group by Christian and Feichtmayr shows the prophet Ezekiel's vision. On the pulpit lie skeletons regaining muscle and skin, helped up by Faith, Hope and Charity. Opposite, the white figure of Ezekiel points at them.
• The miraculous image: A late Gothic Madonna from around 1430, reworked in Baroque style, stands in a golden halo in front of the monks' choir.
• The choir stalls: Walnut and gilded limewood, with reliefs of the lives of Mary and Jesus.

Visiting

The minster is open during the day, with longer hours in summer than in winter. The choir with its stalls can only be seen on a guided tour booked through the parish office. Self-guided group tours are not allowed, and there is no sightseeing during services and concerts. Check current times on the Zwiefalten municipality website before you go. Allow 30 to 45 minutes for the church, or a good hour with a tour.

In the former monastery, now a psychiatric centre, the Württemberg Psychiatry Museum has told the story of the asylum, which has existed here for over 200 years, since 2003.

Getting there

Zwiefalten lies in Reutlingen district, about 35 km as the crow flies south-east of Reutlingen, and is a stop on the Upper Swabian Baroque Route. You can park in the village, and the square with its gatehouse is right in front of the minster.

Tripto tip

After your first walk round, sit in one of the back pews and just look up: only from a distance do you see how Spiegler's fresco runs across the entire nave without any ribs breaking it up. Afterwards, make the short detour to the Wimsen Cave, a water cave you explore by boat, just a few kilometres away.