Altzella Abbey

The foundation of Altzella Monastery occurred in 1162 as a donation by Margrave Otto of Meissen, supported by Emperor Frederick I, who granted extensive lands to the monastery. After the Cistercians rejected an initially planned site and a land exchange following a silver discovery near Freiberg, construction of the abbey began west of Nossen. The convent, originating from the Cistercian Abbey of Pforte, moved in during 1175. The monastery church, dedicated to Saint Mary, was consecrated in 1198. Between 1190 and 1381, Altzella served as the hereditary burial site for the Wettin dynasty. In the 13th century, the Sachsenspiegel, a significant German law book of the Middle Ages, may have originated here. Under Abbots Vinzent Grüner and Martin von Lochau, the monastery experienced a period of prosperity, during which it acquired Nossen Castle, among other assets. In the course of the Reformation, the monastery was secularized in 1540. Subsequently, many of the monastic buildings were demolished, and the materials were used for other construction projects, such as the conversion of Nossen Castle.