MURBACH, ABBEY OF

Former Benedictine abbey in Upper Alsace, near Colmar, France, on the Murbach River; one of the most important German abbeys of the Middle Ages. It was founded a little before 728 by Count Eberhard, and St. pirmin of Reichenau. It soon received great prerogatives: vast possessions, exemption from episcopal jurisdiction, and autonomy under the Holy See. Murbach enjoyed its finest era in Carolingian times, when it had an important community, schools, and a rich library. Deserted in the 11th century during the investiture struggle, it was quickly reestablished during the 12th century; its beautiful church, of which some parts still remain, was built at that time. During the 13th century the abbot ranked among the princes of the empire, and Murbach was imperial territory. But at the end of that century the abbey suffered a decline—a decline even more pronounced in the 14th century when the abbey would accept only noblemen. Common life was abandoned in the 15th century. From the 14th century the prince abbots of Murbach were also the abbots of Lure, in the Diocese of Besançon; and in 1560 Pius IV permanently united the two monasteries, both then held in commendation. The affiliation of Murbach with the Swiss Benedictines in 1666 and then with the congregation of Strasbourg in 1715 proved to be vain attempts at restoring the common life. In 1764 the monks obtained the right to become secular clerics and moved to the neighboring town of Guebwiller. A riot on July 26 and 27, 1789, destroyed this chapter of canons composed exclusively of noblemen.

Bibliography: a. gatrio, Die Abtei Murbach im Elsass, 2 v. (Strasbourg 1895). m. barth, Handbuch der elsässischen Kirchen im Mittelalter, v.2 (Archives de l'Église d'Alsace 12; Strasbourg 1961) 519–1190, esp. 886–897, with bibliog. o. feld, Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche, ed. j. hofer and k. rahner, 10 v. (2d, new ed. Freiburg 1957–65) 7:693–694.

[j. choux]