Liesborn Abbey

In the heart of the village of Liesborn in the municipality of Wadersloh, nestled against the mighty Romanesque tower of the parish church of Ss. Cosmas and Damian, lies the time-honoured Liesborn Abbey. Probably founded around 815 as a convent for ladies, it once developed into one of the most important monasteries in the diocese of Münster.

From a convent to a Benedictine abbey

In 1131, the women's convent was dissolved and transferred to the monks of the Benedictine Order. In the 15th century, under Abbot Heinrich von Kleve, the monastery experienced an artistic and spiritual heyday with the Liesborn School of Painting, which produced works of art of international renown. The "Baroque Blossom" began with Abbot Gregor Waldmann: The impressive representative building dates from this time. In the course of secularisation, the abbey was dissolved in 1803. In the following decades, the art treasures were scattered to the four winds and many parts of the building were demolished: Of the once stately monastery ensemble with enclosure and farmyard as well as numerous fruit, herb and flower gardens, only the church, the three-winged abbot's and representative building built in the Baroque period and the coach house remain today.