Himmelspforten Abbey

The Himmelspforten Monastery is a convent of Discalced Carmelites in the Würzburg district of Zellerau in the Diocese of Würzburg.

The monastery, dedicated to Saints Mary and John the Evangelist, and more recently also to Nicholas, was founded as a Cistercian nunnery in 1231 by the Bishop of Würzburg, Hermann I von Lobdeburg. The original monastery was located in Himmelstadt on the border with the neighboring municipality of Zellingen. It owned extensive lands and vineyards in and around Himmelstadt and estate buildings in the village center, some of which are still preserved. They were repeatedly raided and plundered. For example, Knight Herold von Zellingen unlawfully appropriated monastic property. Finally, Bishop Herman von Lobdeburg ordered the relocation of the convent from Himmelstadt to Himmelpforten near Würzburg in 1253, which Pope Innocent IV had approved in 1251. Until the completion of the new monastery building, the nuns had found refuge in Schönau Monastery around 1248. The monastery church, with the patronage of the Assumption of Mary, is one of the oldest Cistercian churches on German soil. Under Prince-Bishop Julius Echter von Mespelbrunn, the monastery experienced a new flourishing and was rebuilt several times. The monastery was dissolved in 1804 during the secularization. A military hospital and later a tobacco factory were established in the buildings. In 1844, Discalced Carmelites moved into the monastery; they have lived in a side annex since 1925. The sisters produce candles, icons, and paraments.