Ettal’s Chapel

Chapel?  No, another fabulous church.

Ettal is a Benedictine abbey or monastery in Alpine Bavaria near Oberammergau (not far from Garmisch and Neuschwanstein) with a gorgeous baroque church erected in the early 1700’s.  The abbey itself was founded in 1330, dissolved in 1803 (for the same reason the Wieskirsche was almost lost), and restored to the order in 1900.

Although once again Jake and All Things Garmisch got us here, Ettal was already on the list of must-see items from my Army Major brother who was stationed in the area for a time (along with Zugspitze and Neuschwanstein).

The photo above was taken standing directly under the center of the domed ceiling and chandelier of the twelve-sided church seen below – positively stunning and incredibly beautiful!

The beautiful Ettal Abbey, nestled in the little village of Ettal in the foothills of the Bavarian Alps, is close to Garmisch-Partenkirchen as well Oberammergau (famous for magnificent wood-carvers). As the abbey is still an active monastery and school, most of it is not open to the public. But it is worth stopping while you are in the area to view the exterior from an impressive approach, and to step inside the beautiful church sanctuary.

Beer lovers will find another reason to visit  – the Ettaler Klosterbiere (Ettal Brewery).  In the 16th century, Benedictine monks carefully brewed beer using locally-grown malt and hops, and clear pure water from the Bavian Alps.  Though the beer production was held by secular hands for centuries, in 1900 the brewery was returned to the Benedictine order.  Ettaler beer is quite popular and is available for purchase in the village.  According to Jake they also make a form of Schnapps, but apparently it doesn’t hold a candle to their strong beer.

Ettal Abbey was founded on 28 April 1330, Saint Vitalis of Milan’s day, by Emperor Ludwig the Bavarian in the Graswang valley, in fulfilment of an oath on his return from Italy, on a site of strategic importance on the primary trade route between Italy and Augsburg.  The legend is that Ludwig’s horse genuflected three times on the site of the original church building, where a statuette of the Virgin Mary of the Pisano School now stands, a gift from Ludwig to his new foundation. This statue soon became an object of pilgrimage, and the church is dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin.

The photo below shows the pipe organ, as well as Justin doing the same thing I did to get the first picture above.

The famous 14th century image of the Ettal Madonna with an honored place on the high altar was brought from Italy by the emperor, said to be of miraculous nature and the source of the German emperor’s claim to holy status.  You can get a glimpse of it in the photos below.

I love ye ol’ collection box shown next and wonder how old it is, but they also had a more modern one that Justin thought was hilarious – it is automated and takes credit cards.  The inscription above this box – Bruederlich teilen – translates to Brothers share.  We dropped a few coins in just to hear the satisfying thunk as they hit the heavy wood.  I did not try the other.

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The past few days I’ve been in a hotel with NO internet!  OMG, right? 🙂 More on that later but I am so far behind in posting.  Justin is back home now (I sure miss my traveling companion) and I’m nearing the end of my lovely holiday…

Many more posts to come!  One more involving the Great Jake Adventure and then Salzburg is next in the queue.  The stop following is in neither Austria or Germany – can you guess where in the world is this Warner?