Kloster Mariengarten

The Mariengarten convent was founded around 1245 on or near the deserted village of Welderekeshusen. Provost Bruning of Beuren Abbey is considered the founder, and the founding convent moved to Mariengarten in 1249. The first written mention dates from 1246. The convent was situated in the area of interest of the Archbishopric of Mainz, as well as the Dukes of Brunswick and the Landgraves of Thuringia. After the extinction of the Ludowingians, Mariengarten fell under Welf rule. It was subordinate to the Archdeaconry of Nörten in the Archbishopric of Mainz. The initial endowment by Provost Bruning was expanded through donations and purchases from noble families in the region. The convent exercised patronage rights in surrounding villages and held lower jurisdiction. In the 14th century, land acquisitions decreased, and the late medieval agrarian crisis led to financial difficulties, forcing the convent into debt. In 1631, the convent was secularized.

Mariengarten is situated at an elevation of approximately 200 m above sea level, west of the Leine Graben in the Dramme valley, which flows through the manor grounds. The complex is located southwest of Dramfeld in the municipality of Rosdorf, Lower Saxony. To the east, the terrain rises to the Drammeberg, and to the southwest to the Rieschenberg and Rikusberg. The soils in the vicinity consist of pararendzina, pelosols, and pseudogley-parabraunerde, while the underlying rocks include Muschelkalk and Keuper.

Today, Mariengarten presents itself as a manor with a church and various residential buildings. The complex is protected as an architectural monument, thus preserving its historical heritage.

• Rittergut Klein Schneen (manor house, approx. 2615 m away)
• Schloss Jühnde (castle, approx. 5080 m away)
• Schloss Berlepsch (castle, approx. 6072 m away)
• Rittergut Niedergandern (manor house, approx. 7531 m away)