Rippoldsau Priory

The existence of the Priory of Rippoldsau is documented from the year 1139 or 1179. It was consecrated to Saint Nicholas. A papal document from 1179 first mentions the cell of Saint Nicholas on the Rippoldsau estate in the Wolftal, which was owned by the Black Forest monastery of Sankt Georgen. The Lords of Wolfach served as church patrons, a role taken over by the Counts of Fürstenberg from 1306. During the Reformation, the priory was reformed in 1537, and its monastic properties were confiscated. However, the monks returned in 1549 after the Reformation was reversed. In the 17th century, monastic life experienced a decline, particularly during the Thirty Years' War.