Szentgotthárd Abbey

Szentgotthárd Abbey (Hungarian: Szentgotthárdi ciszterci apátság; German: Kloster Sankt Gotthard; Latin: Abbatia Sancti Gotthardi, Slovene: Monoštrska cistercijanska opatija, Prekmurje Slovene: Monošterski cistercijánski klošter) is a former Cistercian monastery in Szentgotthárd in Vas County in southwest Hungary, about 3 km from the Austrian border and 18 km from the Slovenian border.

Foundation and Prosperity: 1183–1391

In 1183, Hungarian King Béla III (Hungarian pronunciation: [ˈbeːlɒ]; 1173–1196) founded a monastery in honor of Saint Gotthard in the countryside at the confluence of the Rába and Lapincs (Hungarian pronunciation: [ˈlɒpintʃ]) rivers. Cistercian monks were settled there from Trois-Fontaines Abbey, France. Twelve monks arrived in Hungary, led by an abbot. With this founding the king hoped to give help to the local farmers because the Cistercians had highly developed agriculture. Béla III also gave the Cistercians the task of establishing settlements in this borderland and bringing them into the mainstream of the country. The Cistercians started to build their new monastic centre in 1184 (confirmed by archaeological excavation of the foundations of the monastery and church). The building complex itself, with its 94 m by 44 m foundations, was unambitious, but capable of further extension. The monastery started to flourish soon. In the Szentgotthárd district around the new monastery, small agricultural villages were quickly established.

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