Kloster Gottesthal

The origins of Kloster Gottesthal are closely linked to Kloster Ägidius in Winkel, an Augustinian canonesses' foundation established in the early 12th century. It is believed that Gottesthal and Ägidius initially formed a double monastery, spatially separated but under the direction of a provost with a shared church. A document from 1145 mentions “Vallis dei” as the location of the canonesses' convent. After the Augustinian canons abandoned their site in Gottesthal, Augustinian nuns moved into the monastery in 1213. In the 1240s, the nuns sought affiliation with the Cistercian Order. A majority of the Gottesthal nuns converted to the Cistercians around 1247, while the remaining Augustinian nuns returned to their old convent in St. Ägidius, which ceased to exist around 1263. In the year of the split, 1247, construction of a dedicated monastery church began in Gottesthal, consecrated in 1251. From 1265, the monastery was subordinate to the mother abbey of Eberbach. Between the 13th and 15th centuries, the nuns significantly expanded their possessions, including farmsteads in the wider area.

Kloster Gottesthal is located in the Rheingau-Taunus district in Hesse, Germany. It lies approximately one and a half kilometers northwest of the center of Oestrich, a district of Oestrich-Winkel, by the Pfingstbach stream at an elevation of 144 meters. The surrounding area is characterized by vineyards.

The relics of Kloster Gottesthal are today a protected cultural monument in Hesse. The surrounding vineyard area continues to bear the name “Klostergarten” (Monastery Garden).

• Schloss Vollrads (castle, approx. 1332 m away)
• Von Itzsteinsches Gutshaus (manor house, approx. 1598 m away)
• Schloss Oestrich (castle, approx. 1913 m away)
• Schloss Schwarzenstein (castle, approx. 2729 m away)