Monastery of Helfta

The monastery of Helfta is a Cistercian monastery of nuns in the city of Eisleben.^[1] It was originally active between 1229 and 1545,^[2] and was restored in 1999.^[1] It is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary.^[2]

The monastic complex today

The original monastery was erected in 1229 by Count Burchard I of Mansfeld, on grounds near Mansfeld Castle and populated with seven nuns from the Abbey of Halberstadt [de]. In 1234, the nuns moved to Rossdorf and, in 1258, relocated a final time to Helfta [de], then just outside Eisleben. During the conflicts of the reign of Bishop Albert II of Halberstadt (r. 1325–1358), the monastery was devastated and the 100 nuns of the community moved to Neuhelfta, a site closer to the city walls, in 1346. The monastery was sacked in 1525 during the Peasants' War. Those nuns who remained relocated to Althelfta. When the Abbess Walburge Reuber died in 1545, the monastery was suppressed by the secular authorities.^[2] It was refounded by ten nuns from the abbey of Seligenthal [de] in 1999. The new buildings incorporate some of the ruins of the old.^[1]

During the abbacy of Gertrude of Hackeborn (r. 1251–1292), Helfta became the foremost centre of female mysticism [de] in Germany.^[2] Mechthild of Magdeburg, Mechthild of Hackeborn and Gertrude the Great all lived and wrote there.^[3] The Eucharist and the Sacred Heart were their major themes.^[2][3]