Benedikt of Nursia (480-547 ?)
The founder of western monasticism came from Umbria. After his years as
a student in Rome, he lived as a hermit and monk. In 529 he founded
Montecasino Monastery, the original monastery of the later
Benedictines. The Festival of the Saints is celebrated on 11 July, and
representations show him with a book (Rule of Benedict) and abbot's
staff.
Benedictines
The monks of the oldest Catholic order live according to the "Rule of
Benedict". This requires the renunciation of all personal property,
chastity, obedience and continuous residence in one place. The
Benedictine monasteries were not only places of prayer and a life
oriented toward God, but also of science and the arts. For example, the
monks made a major contribution to the spread of philosophical and
scientific knowledge of classical antiquity and the Orient in Christian
Europe with their work as translators and copiers. At their monasteries
bookbinding was practiced, optical devices for observing the heavenly
bodies were developed and water mills as power sources were discovered.
Today the Order devotes itself to the ecumene, biblical science, the
history of theology and missionary work in Africa and East Asia.
Count Burkhard II of Comburg-Rothenburg (around 1045/50- 1098)
In 1078 the Count donated his castle and had it converted to a
monastery. The reasons for this may have lain in his long, serious
illness that made him a cripple and the political and religious
conflicts of the investiture dispute. Like many of his class, he
himself later became a monk in his monastery. Burkhard had numerous
connections to other religious institutions. He was supported by two of
his brothers, who gave the monastery landholdings and took over the
bailiff's office (Vogtei) (defense and jurisdiction). Their relatives
and neighbors also supported the newly founded monastery. Count
Burkhard is buried in the sarcophagus constructed around 1200, which
today stands in the Monastery Church (Klosterkirche).
Abbot Hartwig (1104-1139)
The abbot from Hirsau donated two of his precious Romanesque works of
art, the "Antependium" (decoration of the altar table) and the famous
wheel-shaped chandelier, to the monastery. Under Hartwig, the third
abbot, the Benedictine monastery experienced its first heyday. Hartwig
is buried together with Count Burkhard II in the stone sarcophagus of
the Monastery Church.
Dean Erasmus Neustetter (1523-1594)
Erasmus Neustetter, called the "Stürmer von Schönfeld", was dean of the
Convent of Canons at Großcomburg from 1551 to 1594. From 1583 until his
death he was also provost. Neustetter had extensive structural
alterations to the monastery carried out. In addition to the
well-fortified ring wall, several new buildings were erected and
additions were made to existing ones. The dean, who was very
knowledgeable of humanism, supported the sciences and left the
monastery his valuable personal library.
Duke Friedrich II of Württemberg (1754 - 1816)
Friedrich, who was Elector from 1798 to 1816, and King from 1806, was a
nephew of Duke Carl Eugen of Württemberg. He primarily has a lasting
place in the memory of the people of Württemberg as "fat Friedrich" due
to his corpulence.
During his rule Württemberg was considerably enlarged and was raised
first to an Electorate in 1803, and then to a Kingdom in 1806. The
price for this was the country's rapprochement of France and Napoleon.
Friedrich succeeded in giving the country a streamlined, centralized
structure.