Former St. Georgenberg Monastery in Frankenberg (Eder)

The founding of the former Cistercian monastery dates back to a donation by the noblemen of Itter, who owned a domain north of Frankenberg. Their attempt to establish a convent near Sachsenberg failed. With the assistance of the Landgraves of Thuringia, the new monastery was built outside the gates of Frankenberg starting in 1249 and endowed with the patronage of the Frankenberg Chapel.

The castle and town of Frankenberg were intended to serve as a base for the Hessian-Thuringian Landgraviate, and the St. Georgenberg Monastery was intended to contribute to strengthening its influence in this region. This rather secular intention and its relatively close proximity to the thriving town of Frankenberg led to the monastery playing a significant role not only in religious matters but also in the social life of the region.

Its inmates were divided into religious and lay sisters, who largely came from the landed gentry, the patrician families of the surrounding towns, and, in the case of lay sisters, also from lower social classes. These close kinship ties between the surrounding countryside, the nearby town, and the convent's inmates led to lively interactions that expanded the influence of St. Georgenberg beyond the monastic walls.
The monastery was dissolved in 1568, but the nuns—the last of whom died in 1581—still had the right to remain.

The two-story, three-winged building complex from the 13th to 17th centuries is well preserved and still appears as a whole today. 

The most impressive part is undoubtedly the north wing, on the east side of which stands the late Romanesque former St. Mauritius Chapel. It is divided by mezzanine floors. The long, narrow, round-arched windows date from the mid-13th century and give the building its distinctive style. The rest of the north wing was built at the end of the 14th century and altered at the beginning of the 16th century. Of particular interest is the section containing the remains of the former cloister, with its late Gothic tracery windows.

Today, the former Cistercian convent of St. Georgenberg houses the local history museum, which is located in the north wing of the complex and was opened to the public on May 29, 1952. The first museum director was co-founder Georg Merkel, who served until 1977. In 1984, after four years of renovations, the museum expanded to include the Romanesque-style Mauritius Chapel. During this period, Alfred Sehmisch served as museum director (1982-1995). This project was largely carried out by the "Kreisheimatmuseum Frankenberg e. V." (district local history museum association) under the leadership of its vice-chairman, Heinz Brandt, a retired school principal, historian, and local historian. Mr. Brandt is also the author of the book "Philipp Soldan von Frankenberg, a Hessian artist of the 16th century," published by the Waldeck-Frankenberg district in 1984 and available for purchase at the museum.

The centerpiece of the museum's exhibits is the work of the Frankenberg artist Philipp Soldan (1500-1570), a woodcarver, stonemason, and master of the stove plate in the 16th century. His intricately carved beam ends, which once adorned the Church of Our Lady in Frankenberg, are housed in the museum. The motifs, depicting monks, owls, lions, rams' heads, maidens, and masks, among others, are very impressive and mark the art-historical transition from the Late Gothic to the Renaissance. The cloister also contains works by another famous son of Frankenberg: the master builder and stonemason Tyle von Frankenberg (14th century). The museum displays sandstone figures by this artist, also from the Church of Our Lady, which were removed and partially mutilated (destroyed) during the iconoclasm of 1606 on the orders of the Hessian Landgrave Moritz the Learned.

Further information about the museum can be found at:
Museum in the monastery in Frankenberg (Eder) - Ederbergland Tourism Association +
Museum in the Monastery | Waldeck-Frankenberg District